


Descent

by funygirl38



Series: The Path [1]
Category: Loki - Fandom
Genre: Adventure, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-16
Updated: 2013-11-17
Packaged: 2017-12-29 14:34:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 106,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1006549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/funygirl38/pseuds/funygirl38
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Loki's path to madness is paved with love and loss..</p><p> As it is in every realm, so it is in Asgard. Life is altered in the drawing of a breath, the speaking of a word. When Loki, second in line to the throne of Asgard, bests his brother, the Crown Prince Thor, in a sparring match, he is unaware that in doing so he has set the course of his own destiny.</p><p>Check out my companion story board on Pinterest!</p><p>http://www.pinterest.com/funygirl38/descent-by-deborah-austin/</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

As the words “stein til stein for alltid en så sier jeg dette spell er gjort ” escaped from his lips, his brother, caught in his forward trajectory, found he was suddenly unable to move arm nor leg, his considerable bulk crashing to the arena floor mere inches from Loki. The staff, which Thor had held aimed like a javelin, shattered under the impact. His momentum carried him to his back, his arms at an awkward angle, the remains of the staff still clenched in his fists. Loki scuttled backwards away from where Thor lay, his blond locks pooled beneath his head, face a grimace as he stared upwards into the sky, chest heaving, the leather straps of his sparring armor crisscrossing his chest, dark with sweat and dirt.  
“Release me, brother!” he roared. Loki could hear laughter in the stands.  
Most of the time, when Thor issued a challenge, it was a contest of brawn and though Loki was quick, skilled with staff and sword, he was woefully outdone in strength and heft by his larger sibling. The matches often ended with Thor sitting upon Loki's chest until he cried “Yield!” Thor's method of attack would be to keep Loki so out of breath, so busy defending himself from the blows of his staff or parrying the swing of the broadsword that he could nary utter a word much less a whole spell. Today, however, Thor's confidence had been his undoing.  
He had taken Loki's feet out from under him with a hard swing of his staff, but before delivering the winning blow, he had turned to Sif and Magnus who sat among the seats in the empty arena, and he had smiled. Loki had taken those few seconds to call out the binding spell as Thor had pivoted around and raised his staff in the air.  
He struggled to his feet, heard clapping and he could feel his heart nearly burst from his chest. Magnus had stood up and was calling out to him, “Loki, ask him to yield before you release him or he shall have you!”  
Loki was still trying to catch his breath, gasping as he leaned over Thor, his teeth bared in pain, the hitch in his side catching him at every intake. “Brother, will you yield to me?”  
He could see the anger in Thor's eyes, more than that, his wounded pride. “I yield to you, now release me so that I may stand up, Odin's beard!”  
“Jeg slipper deg fra dette spell. “ Loki muttered as he passed his right hand over Thor's prone figure, stepping back as Thor leaped to his feet. He brushed the dirt from his arms and legs then clapped Loki hard between the shoulder blades, the sting of the blow made all the more fulsome by the bare skin where the straps formed a large open diamond at his back.  
“You bested me fairly, brother.”  
Loki bent down and picked up his staff from the hard dirt floor of the arena.“Does that surprise you?”  
His gaze swung up the stands to where Sif and Magnus were descending the steps from the stands toward the arena floor. Behind them, making her way cautiously, was a young woman dressed in a long simple light blue shift tied at the waist with a braided cord belt. Her translucent blue eyes darted from Magnus and Sif to the two men on the arena floor and back again. She tucked a strand of her chestnut hair behind her ear. She was winsome, graceful in her movements, her full lips drawn together, a somewhat dubious look on her face. She reached the dirt floor of the arena and stopped a short distance from where the small band of warriors now stood.  
She scuffed her bare feet in the dirt, keeping her eyes averted as they spoke together. She felt forgotten momentarily as she waited, her hands clasped in front of her.  
“Come, wench.” Thor called to her. She made her way out to the group who stood in a semi-circle before her.  
“I give you your new master.”  
The young woman seemed to shrink before the warriors as Loki stepped into the middle of the group. “You serve me now.”  
She nodded once, “Yes, Milord.”  
She ventured to study him. Meeting the steely gaze of his brilliant blue-green eyes, she let her own drop to the ground to stare at the tips of his brown leather boots.  
“You should have thought of a lesser prize to wager, Thor.” Sif chided playfully as Loki looked over his shoulder at them. “Though I am surprised your brother cared to bother, he has a full household. What is one more servant to him?”  
Loki spun around, his ire high. Sif's goading never failed to produce a reaction from him. “The true prize came in besting this blond behemoth. That he chose to reduce his own household by one is none of my concern. His pride won the day for me.” Loki tipped his hand with a flourish towards Thor who was watching him, eyes narrowed, arms crossed.  
“Perhaps, if there were any other way for you to win other than with that silver tongue of yours, it would be a fairer fight.”  
Loki bristled at the barb.“I am skilled with the blade as well as my mind, perhaps if your intellect matched your brute strength, you would give me more of a challenge.”  
Thor smiled, though his eyes remained hard and fixed, “Would you care to wager again, I would test you, sword to sword.”  
Loki glanced at the servant girl who remained staring at the ground, her toe making circles in the dirt, one hand clasping an elbow.  
“No, I grow weary and hungry, you would not catch me at my best.”  
“That is the idea, brother.” Thor chuckled, planting his hands akimbo on his hips.  
Loki gave Thor a sardonic smile in return, “I shall consider this fight fairly won, do you concede?”  
“I do concede. Let us go and wash the dirt of this place from us. There will be feasting tonight and I fear the consequences should we keep Magnus too late from the table.” They all laughed as they started for the archway at the far side of the arena. A few steps from the entrance, Loki whirled around, catching sight of the servant girl still standing where they had been moments before.  
“Will you stand there until darkness falls? Come!”  
The woman appeared startled. Seeing Loki gesture for her to follow him, she broke into a run, stumbling to a stop before him.  
“Forgive me, Milord.” She could feel his stare as he assessed her fully and she closed her eyes, keeping her head bowed.  
“Follow me, do not fall behind again.”  
She had to trot to keep up with his long strides down the torchlit hall to the equipment room. Thor was currently standing by the large stone basin, arms raised high as a young boy, an attendant, unlaced the leather armor tied at his back.  
He stopped quick and the woman dug in her heels nearly losing her balance, stopping herself from knocking him to the ground.  
“Woman, remove my armor.” Loki held his arms up in mimic of his brother whose smirk as she started to try the knots with her small hands made Loki impatient. “Make haste, wench.”  
Sweat beaded on her forehead, arms, her fingers becoming damp as she feverishly worked the laces, making little headway. After a couple of minutes, he swung around with a growl and shoved her to the ground where she landed, mouth agape.  
“Boy,” Loki gestured to the young servant who was hanging Thor's sparring armor on a hook on the wall, “Come show this woman how to unlace this armor. I grow irritated.”  
“Brother, have some patience. She is young, a hand maiden. She has likely never seen armor the likes of this. I daresay there is much she need learn.”  
Loki shrugged out of his armor and joined Thor at the stone water basin, splashing and rubbing the cold water over his bare chest, his hands and arms. He grabbed a piece of pumice from the bottom of the basin and scrubbed it over his skin till the blood ran close to the surface, giving him a ruddy glow. He handed the piece to the young boy,  
“Attend to my back.” He leaned forward, pulling his long black hair over one shoulder and placed his hands on the edge of the basin as the boy scrubbed the dirt from him.  
“I am no teacher, I desire my household to be trained when they come to me. I cannot be bothered with such things.”  
Thor dropped his pumice stone back into the water, “Training a servant such as she may be a pleasure.”  
Loki had pulled off his boots and removed his breeches, calling for the attendant to bring him a fresh change of garments. He now applied the pumice to his legs. Thor smiled when he caught a glimpse of the young woman pressed into a corner of the room, hiding her eyes against their exposed flesh as Loki dropped the pumice stone back into the water.  
“So, you wager her to me so that you need not bother with her?”  
“I never said that I did not wish to bother with her. I said you should consider the possibilities that training may bring.”  
Loki took the breeches that the attendant held out to him and slipped them on. “She will serve as one of my personal attendants. I do not see how she will be worth much more than that.” He took the brown tunic from the attendant's arm and pulled it over his head, drawing his hair from underneath.  
“I am returning to my rooms. I will dress for the feast and see you there.”  
Thor nodded, winked at him, “Of course, brother, we must recognize Erfen's new babe, it gives us a good reason to eat and drink ourselves into a stupor.”  
Loki grinned and Thor smiled in return.  
“At least this we agree on.” He bowed with a flourish and headed up the stairs to the courtyard above. Loki turned to the young woman.  
“Follow me.”  
When she hesitated, he clucked his tongue, “Step lively, I must show you how to lay out my clothes.”

She found she was able to keep up with his strides by matching him with a step-trot gait. She marveled at the grandeur of the palace halls they walked through. The profusion of gold, silver and bronze gilt. The massive statues. The friezes and frescoes, the marble floors. Torches casting warm light reflecting from a thousand surfaces at every turn. Though it hardly matched the beauty of Freyr's castle in Alfheim, it had it own aesthetic majesty and were she not terrified to be following her new master to his chambers, she would have been content to wander the halls looking at the artwork, admiring the architecture.  
As she hurried to follow him, she found the time to study him as she had attempted to in the arena. His hair was long and ebony black, nearly to the middle of his back, tied now at mid-length with a leather strap. He was as slight in form as she though taller by at least a head. The confidence with which he acted was reflected in his walk, his movements. His long arms were accentuated by delicate turned hands tapering to long fingers, his muscular legs seemed to go on forever. His slight waist rose into a broad chest, not as wide perforce as his brother's, but enough to tell that though he was a prince of the realm, he was hardly idle, his days likely busied with horseback riding, sparring, gaming and other activities designed to keep him fit. His face was angular, high cheekbones giving him a regal bearing, his bright eyes the color of the frozen waters of Jotunheim and a wide expressive mouth that seemed now to be clenched tight in severity composed the figure that now stood with the door to his chambers thrown wide as he made way for her to enter.  
She scanned the room in awe. To her left, built into the wall and large enough to stand in was a great fireplace, a low fire smoldering in its grate. A daybed and a high backed chair sat at either side. Farther left beyond the sitting area stood a row of dark pink granite marble pillars leading out onto a railed balcony with a view high over the city of Asgard. Before the pillars, inside the perimeter of the room were a line of large iron braziers to keep the room warm in winter though now their bellies were cold and dark, the cool of approaching autumn not yet enough to call them into use. The center of the room was taken over largely by a massive bed, its arched ebony headboard carved with intertwined snakes, scarlet silk coverlet turned down to reveal dark green sheets.  
“This is where my clothes are kept,” He crossed the cavernous room to an immense double-doored wooden wardrobe, glancing over his shoulder to find the woman still standing just inside the entrance to his chambers, her arms wrapped around her.  
“Wench, did I not tell you to follow me? I cannot teach you anything from across the room.”  
He glared at her as he pointed to the spot beside him and she hurried across the room, her bare feet slapping the marble floor, muffled only when she crossed the thick carpet beneath the massive bed that dominated the chamber.  
He opened the left door to the wardrobe. “My tunics and breeches are folded here, my boots below my summer court dress, winter court dress..”  
“What is the difference?”  
Loki turned to her and grabbed her hard by the chin,“When you speak, you ask my permission first. You will start with “Please, Milord. Do you ken?” He shoved her chin from his grasp.  
She swallowed hard then started again, “Please, Milord, what is the difference between winter and summer dress?”  
“My winter set is far heavier, lined against the cold though I prefer the season. The cold seldom bothers me. I keep my sparring armor in the equipment room below the arena. My battle armor,” He opened the right door, “Is here. I expect it to be kept in pristine condition. It must be oiled to keep the leather supple.” She wanted to reach out and touch the green and black great coat, but could scarce imagine the beating she would receive. She would have time enough when she was working the outfit to explore it.  
“My robes,” he gestured to a short rack at the back of the wardrobe, “I use for the evenings and mornings.” The movement of the doors fluttered the hems. She surmised they were silk or light cotton and in a myriad of dark colors, the most prominent being dark green and gold as his other ceremonial garments.  
“Do..” She clapped her hand to her mouth as his eyes flickered to hers, “Please, Milord, do you have winter robes as well?”  
“They are stored away, soon to be brought out methinks. I shall have them brought in soon enough. You shall help to remove the summer robes and store them when the time comes.”  
He closed the wardrobe and led her to a doorway to their right.  
They entered another slightly smaller room. The walls of jade colored marble were carved in a bas relief of ivy. Torchieres stood at intervals, their flames flickering in the draft, casting dancing shadows about the room. A tall set of shelves held large towels. Central to the room was a long deep basin built into the polished marble floor, steps leading down to a submerged stone bench seat along one side. Covering the opposite wall were massive polished silver panels. A short table stood off to the side with a polished stone basin sitting atop it, a silver chamber pot nestled on the shelf beneath.  
“You will be required to draw my water, set up my morning toilette and garments, bring my clothing to the laundress, fetch it when it is finished and put it away properly.”  
He waved her out of the room back into the main chamber.  
“I will speak to the house boy. He will procure a pallet for you to sleep on. You may make your bed by the fireplace which you will tend to if needed. The shift you wear is indecent for court. You will not attend me tonight. Follow the houseboy to the servant's quarters for a thorough cleaning and a new set of garments for yourself.”  
She wanted to explain to him that she had been clean and neat when she set out from her village three days hence along with a wealth of items, silks, satins, elixirs, precious stones, rare wines from King Freyr. She had been included as a tribute from her father, Eldan, to the crown prince, Thor, but she knew it was of little concern to him.  
“Now if you have paid attention to me, I shall know it. Draw my water for a bath. I must make ready for the marking and recognizing ceremony this evening.”  
She stood stock still for a moment before scurrying to the bathing room.  
He listened as the water began to flow into the large basin, nodded to himself, then walked out to the balcony to study the city below.

She put her hands under the heavy stream issuing from the pipe, yanked them back and tried to adjust the temperature with the brass viper shaped handles before her, felt it again. Still hot. She sighed and pushed the opposite handle away from her, grunting with the effort, leaning further over the basin. The water was now much too cold and she reached out for the handles one more time, one hand on the rim of the basin, finding she'd extended herself too far as she tried in vain to clutch the edge of the basin while she fell forward. She slid into the water with a splash.  
In her panic to climb from the bath, she scrabbled for purchase along the edge of the basin until she found the submerged bench and was able to follow it to the stone steps. As she put her foot on the first step, she felt a strong hand lift her from the water by the back of her shift and set her on the marble, holding her until her feet stopped slipping on the polished surface. She wiped the water from her eyes, aware that she was creating a waterfall down the stone steps into the basin.  
“Clumsy wench!” Loki cried, “Is the simplest task too difficult for you?”  
He gave her arm a shake that reverberated through her body, making her teeth clack together.  
“Please, Milord. I..I was trying to temper the water for you and I slipped.”  
Still holding the collar of her shift, he dragged her out of the bathing room, across the main chamber to the massive double doors.  
“Thor bested me in the end after all, for I have to contend with someone as inept as you!” he growled as he swung open the doors to find his houseboy standing outside the door, his hand raised to knock.  
“Take this slattern and see that she is wrung out, cleaned properly and dressed before returning to me. Fetch a pallet and linens for her as well. I suppose I am saddled with her. I must remember to thank Thor properly at a later date.” As they headed away from the bedchamber, she heard the door slam shut.  
She followed the houseboy to a set of stairs spiraling downward at the far end of the corridor, wet and shivering, sniffling. The houseboy waited until they were halfway down the stairs to speak.  
“You have come to serve Lord Loki?”  
She regarded him before answering. He didn't look to be more than ten years old. Standing only to her shoulder he had a shock of short red hair, dark blue eyes and delicate features.  
“I came to serve the Crown Prince Thor. He wagered me in a contest with Loki and lost.”  
The boy shook his head sadly, “Milord is a cruel master.”  
She nodded in agreement, “Indeed.”  
They entered a small kitchen at the bottom of the stairs where three older women sat at one end of a long table eating from small wooden bowls, a half round of peasant bread in the middle between them. A fire crackled in a large fireplace.  
One of the women, looking to be the senior of the group, a portly, short lady with steel gray hair done up in a tight bun at her head and a slightly soiled dress, hauled herself up from the table and approached them. “Gods and Goddesses, what happened to you, my child?”  
“She is a new house servant to Lord Loki. She slipped and fell into his bath.”  
The woman clucked her tongue, “Goodness did you hit your head? Any broken bones?”  
Before she could answer, the woman continued on.  
“And he turned you out like this? You could catch your death of cold?” She removed her wool shawl as she stood up, and draped it around the young woman's shoulders.  
“Silas, go fetch a tub and start to draw water for the girl. We must get her out of these wet clothes into a warm bath and a dry dress.” She waved her hand at the houseboy who was off and running before the words were finished.  
The older lady sat her down on the bench seat nearest to the fire. “I'm Helgi, this is Artra,”  
A younger buxom woman with dark blond hair done in braids and flashing blue eyes, nodded to her.  
“And this is Volsa.” A tall thin severe looking woman with white hair tied at her head and eyes so brown they were almost black, merely stared at the young woman. “What be your name, dear?”  
“Eidra.”  
Helgi smiled, “Eidra, a lovely name for such a lovely girl. Are you hungry?”  
Eidra nodded vigorously, “I have eaten nothing since the morning last, before we entered the city limits in preparation to meet with the Allfather.”  
She shuddered at the memory of Thor's lecherous smile as she was walked before him. She had hated the feeling that she was on display. Thor had taken her shoulder and drawn her to stand beside him while her escort, Targas, spoke at length with Odin.  
“Scandalous!” Helgi pushed a bowl of what smelled like beef stew into her hands and was in the act of handing her a spoon but she already had the bowl to her lips, slurping noisily, the stew running down her throat in a steady warm stream. It tasted like pure nectar.  
“Careful, Eidra. You will sick it up for sure. Slow down.”  
She paused to take a breath, holding the bowl tightly while Helgi sat beside her rubbing her back.  
“How came a woman like yourself to be a servant? You look as if you have been raised in a fine house. Your hands are that of a woman used to little work.”  
“Oh no, I was a house maid. My father owed Crown Prince Thor a great favor and so he gave me over as a tribute to him.”  
“The favor must have indeed been great for your own father let you to become a slave?” Helgi looked into the bowl, seeing she'd finished the stew, “Would you like more?”  
Eidra nodded, “Yes, please. I do not know the nature of the favor, my father would not tell me”  
Helgi ladled more stew into her bowl.“You were let out as a house maid before then, in Alfheim?”  
“I served in my father's household.”  
Helgi put a hand to her mouth, “Truly?”  
“I have served my family in our house since I was but a child. It is the only way I was allowed to live in Alfheim.”  
She thought for a moment, considering that she might be revealing too much to strangers but it had been an arduous journey and a trying day and her tongue was thus unloosed by kind hospitality.  
“I am half human, half Alfari. When my human mother died soon after my birth, my Alfari father came to Midgard to claim me and take me back to Alfheim upon the King's stipulation that I would serve the household when I grew old enough. This was Freyr's condition to him. I would not be able to take my proper position in the household because I was of mixed blood.”  
Helgi frowned, rubbed Eidra's back as she spooned the stew to her mouth. “Freyr is heartless. You poor thing.”  
Eidra shrugged, “It is all I have ever known. I was well treated. My brother Danar was my constant companion until his rite of passage. Then we seldom saw each other. He is now a warrior.  
Silas had returned by then. He took Eidra's hand, pulled her upright. “The bath is ready Milady.”  
Helgi waved Silas away, “Go tend to your chores, whelp. This job is not for the likes of young boys.”  
Silas reddened, noticeable even in the dimly lit kitchen and scampered back up the stairs, his sandals slapping on the stones as Helgi turned to Eidra.  
“Now let us make you presentable, dear.”

Loki touched the head of the squalling infant before him.  
“I wish you eloquence.”  
“For now, however, I wish you to be silent” he thought to himself as Vanar paraded the child around the room. As the ceremony came to an end, he chose to slip away to the Great Hall for the beginning of the feast. Sif had opted to wander off as well. Loki found her, a chalice of mead in her hands, surveying the groaning table in the Great Hall.  
“I have no stomach for such pageantry unless it end here at the feast.” he sneered at the crowd now filing into the hall.  
“If it were your offspring you would not be so cross.” Sif took a draught from her chalice.  
“Are you offering, Sif?”  
He knew the danger of speaking in such a manner, the walls often had ears. If Thor were to hear him, he'd likely end up over the table with Thor's fist across his jaw.  
Her choking sputter around a mouthful of mead caused Loki to frown, angry at the implication of her actions.  
“I would rather make love to my manservant, the very thought.”  
Loki grabbed a chalice from the tray of a passing server. “Must you make such base comparisons? I would bring you to unimaginable heights of ecstasy.”  
Her laughter, melodic and sharp, made him look away into his own chalice.  
“I doubt you wish to contend with your brother for position. You are concerned with no one but yourself, Loki, it would only be the means to an end for you. I desire an equal, not a dalliance. Besides, why would I choose you when I already have the crown prince?”  
She set her empty chalice on the table, drifting into the expanding crowd while Loki sought a chair far from anyone, preferring to drink alone, nursing his wounded ego. He watched Thor, Sif, Magnus as they laughed and talked, toasted with the fine wine sent from Alfheim that the Allfather had distributed among the servers so that all would be able to share in the bounty. He had filled his chalice once again when he heard Thor begin to recount the details of their contest to the crowd. He knew it was too much to hope for that Thor's attention would not come to bear on him, looking up with a groan as Thor glided towards him.  
“Ulris missed the match, Loki. I would ask you to replay it but I fear it might end much differently now.”  
Thor gave a playful tug at Loki's hair, jumping back as Loki swung his hand around trying to connect with Thor's stomach.  
“You have saddled me with damaged goods. Perhaps I should let you win, then it would be a burden lifted from my household.”  
Thor mocked chagrin as he leaned over to Loki, “Whatever has happened brother?”  
“The woman is a disaster, she speaks without permission, she is clumsy, knows not what to do.”  
Thor clapped his hands together with a smile, “Very well, Loki, I will take her off your hands, IF you concede that the victory was mine.”  
Loki started forward in his chair, “It was a fair won fight, you great stupid oaf! I will never concede to you.'  
Thor patted his head causing him to grab for Thor's hand. “Then she is your trouble, brother.”  
Thor and the others wandered off leaving Loki to brood as he held his cup aloft for more wine, his thoughts wandering down a convoluted path.

 

Eidra had built the fire in the grate to a small but roaring blaze. She lay on the pallet draped over with a heavy coverlet, gazing into the fire, thinking of her warm bed back home, her brown lynx, Astor, her father's gentle voice as he read aloud from his scrolls. Her eyes had just closed in sleep when she heard footsteps, slightly uneven, outside the doors. She watched the door, turning back to face the fire as she saw the tips of his boots cross the threshold, listening as he approached her pallet. She lay there tense, waiting.

Loki had partaken of more than six cups of wine and half as many of mead before he arose to retire to his chambers, weaving among the couples locked in amorous embrace, small groups sitting, talking. He nearly knocked one couple to the floor as they hid behind the long red drapes lining the walls. The atmosphere had served to arouse, sadden him, only adding to his anger that he should feel anything akin to loneliness and so he had slipped away.  
As he approached his chambers, his hands at the door, he'd lain his forehead against the heavy wood, his head spinning. When he entered the bedchamber he saw the new servant girl asleep on the pallet. He had intended to crawl onto his bed and call for her to help him undress but as he stood over her, swaying slightly, he was acutely aware of how hard he'd become. He stroked himself absently through the fabric of his breeches, an unexpected thrust of his hips threatening to topple him forward.  
He shrugged off his long coat, let it slip to the floor, breath coming shallow and fast. He knelt behind her, a trembling hand brushing the hair back from her face, the other now working the laces of his breeches to free himself. All at once he grabbed her by the arm and hauled her to her feet.  
Her frightened eyes, her open mouth, hand raised to stop him from advancing any further, stoked the heat of desire building in his loins to a fever pitch. She let a high pitched squeal as he propelled her backwards to the wall beside the fireplace, jogging her head hard enough against the marble to star her vision, catch her breath in her throat.  
He forced one leg between thighs, parting them easily, feeling her whole body tense as she sought to fight him. He lunged at her throat, his head swimming with a mixture of wine and lust, biting the soft skin hard enough to sting. She cried out, flailing at his chest with her hands, receiving a hard shove back to the marble in retaliation and a growl heavy with wine,  
“Stand still, whore.”  
He had freed himself from his breeches and was thrusting himself against her, his fingers dragging the fabric of her skirt up her legs, exposing her sex to the cool night air. He shoved his hand between their bodies, sliding his palm down her lower belly, drawing his fingers clumsily through the downy hair and the soft folds beneath, searching for the entrance he would soon fill. It was then that she began to cry, to beg him, “Please, Milord, do not..”  
“Speak not again,” He whispered hoarsely, cringing as she let out a choked cry. He pushed away from her, taking one arm and turning her to face the wall, holding the hand pinned there as he lifted her skirt once again. In one forward thrust he had buried himself inside her, his body pressed at her back. She threw her head backwards with a screech, coming within a hair's breadth of connecting with the bridge of his nose save for the hand he had entangled in her hair. He yanked her head backwards to the side to whisper in her ear, “Make such a move against me again and I shall slit your throat as I fuck you, my cries of pleasure shall be the last sound you hear.”  
But she was beyond all fear, all sense. She started to sob, feeling him throb inside her as he began to move, his legs shaking with the effort, biting at her shoulder, pressing her cheek to the marble wall. When she screamed, his hand left her hair to cover her mouth, pulling her head back to his shoulder, his thrusts became rougher, more insistent, he was now groaning into her ear, ragged gasps belying his approaching climax. In one fluid movement he withdrew from her pressing between her buttocks with a lone cry, one hand covering him as he finished, spending himself upon the small of her back.  
His hand slowly slipped from her mouth to rest upon her throat as he fought to catch his breath. She dared not move until he backed from her, letting her skirt drop back into place. She slid down the wall to hide her face with her hands, her body aching, stinging from the force of his entry. Holding his breeches up with one hand, he stumbled to his bed, crawling up the mattress to his pillow and flopping face down upon it. He wanted to tell her to remove his boots, get his evening robe, stop her soft sobbing. He did nothing. By the time his thoughts had coalesced into sense, he was unconscious. 

She retreated back to her pallet, looked at herself in the light from the fire. There was blood on the skirt of her dress, a small bloom but enough to be noticed. She would have to bring it to be washed in the morning. She stared at the bed where he now slept, his breathing heavy and even, wondering how far she could get from the city before they found his body in the morning. She thought then of her father, of the dishonor such an act would bring to his house and the tears threatened to start again. She crept into the bathing room, drawing water into the small stone basin to wash his seed from her back and buttocks, wishing she could scrub the memories from her mind.  
When she finally made her way back to her pallet, he had shifted position in bed, having kicked his boots from his feet, wrapping himself in the blankets. She considered waking him to help him change for bed but his reaction now was likely to be much worse than his wrath in the morning and if he were to attack her again, she would undoubtedly kill him or die trying. It was safer for all to let him sleep. She lay down on the pallet again, enfolding herself into the coverlet, letting her tears carry her into a fitful slumber.


	2. 2

She lay there, eyes open, listening to him groan as he moved about, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed where he now sat, elbows on his knees, head in hands.   
“Woman!” He yelled, groaned again, “Up, wench.”  
She rolled over to face the room and rose from the pallet, wincing at the stiffness in her muscles as she walked to where he sat.   
“Yes, Milord.”  
He squinted up at her, sat back, “What in the name of the Gods happened to you? Have you started your menses?”  
For a moment, she was confused then she looked down at the dried blood stain on her gown and fell mute. She could find no words to describe what had happened the night before.  
“Woman, answer me,” he stood up, towering over her, “I am in no mood to brook your silence.” He held the side of his head, looking at himself for the first time.   
“I am still in my court dress,” he took her by the shoulder, giving her a hard shake, “Why did you not see to it that I was dressed for bed?”  
“Please, Milord. You came to your chambers in a drunken stupor last..” The hand at her shoulder gave her another hard shake, stopping her words.  
“How dare you accuse me of such crude behavior! I do not remember anything save the ceremony last evening! Who brought me here to my chambers?”  
“You came alone, Milord.”  
His grip on her shoulder eased and he looked around the room, bewildered as if trying to remember something. Finally he let her go.   
“Draw a bath for me. You may take my garments to the laundress. Then return and lay out a tunic and breeches for me...,” He patted the coverlet, “here on my bed. Away with you.”

She leaned over, this time with the pipe before her at the end, watching the water flow into the basin. He remembered nothing? He had taken her, deflowered her without ritual, made her unclean, and he remembered none of it? She wanted to fly from the room, jump on top of him and gouge his eyes out, remove his tongue, cut off his manhood. She sat back on her haunches for a few moments longer, then, stopping the flow of water, she walked out into the bed chamber to find him stripped naked to the waist.   
“And change your dress as well. Do you not keep track of your cycle?”   
She nodded, “I shall in the future, Milord.”  
He handed her his tunic and outer vestments, unlaced his breeches and stepped out of them. Realizing she was not taking them, he looked at her, saw her eyes were closed . He shoved the breeches at her.   
“Pay attention, wench!”  
She gasped, grabbing at the breeches before they fell to the floor, keeping her eyes averted from his naked form.   
“I shall not be long. See that you make haste to return.”  
Her arms full, she nodded again and without another word, fled from the room.

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he walked into the bathing room to the chamber pot to relieve his bladder. As he took himself in hand and looked down, he was horrified to find dried streaks of blood upon his manhood and inner thighs. He stumbled back, almost losing his footing, swinging around to stare at himself in the reflection of the wall panel lit by flickering torchlight. His stomach clenched as the light displayed far more than he had seen before. He broke into a cold sweat, remembering the stain on his servant's dress and he wracked his mind, trying to recall the events of the previous evening, finding nothing beyond Sif's biting rebuttal.   
Aggravated, he stepped down into the basin, sliding into the warm water until he was fully submerged, resurfacing to sit along the stone bench, his hands at his side, eyes searching the walls of the room as if to find the answer carved there among the vines.

Helgi was preparing the morning meal when Eidra flew down the spiral staircase, through the kitchen and down the short hall into the laundry room. She thrust the armful of clothes at Artra who stood stirring a great pot of boiling soapy water with a large wooden handle then backed away, watching Artra stoke the fire, missing the glance the laundress threw her as she noticed the stain on the front of her dress.   
“Are you well?”   
Eidra jumped as if struck.   
“Forgive me,”she mumbled as she scurried from the room, heading back towards the kitchen, wondering what she was going to tell Helgi about her dress. She needn't have worried. When Helgi spied her, she gave a sympathetic moan.  
“You started your cycle last night? Odin wept, let me get you a belt and some cloths. Go into the washroom, I can draw a basin of water for a bath.”  
Helgi guided her back down to the laundry room where she drew the dress over her head and tossed it to Artra who stood there, hands on her hips. Eidra waited in the humid warmth of the room, arms crossed in front of her to hide her nakedness.  
“I have not time for a bath. I must hurry back. Milord will be waiting for me.” Eidra cast a glance up the spiral staircase as if she expected Loki to come charging down it any minute.   
“He can wait in Hel. You must at least wash yourself and have a fresh dress. Come, let me find a belt.”  
She followed Helgi into the washroom and stood there while the older woman gently wiped the dried blood from her. Eidra started to shiver violently as Helgi put a towel around her and set her down on a small stool, smoothing her hair from her forehead.   
“Child, why do you tremble so? It is a normal part of being a woman, you know this. You are well past your first blood.”  
Eidra could not speak, could not even nod, simply watched Helgi take a fresh dress from a hook near the wash basin and hand it to her. As she let loose the towel to draw the dress over her head, Helgi finally saw the bite mark bruised into the flesh at her left shoulder.   
“Oh dear, my little poppet.” she cooed, stroking the skin as Eidra flinched.  
“Do not tell anyone, please,” she begged, her voice as tremulous as her body.  
Helgi pursed her lips together as she helped Eidra tie the drawstring at her neck, “It shall be our secret though were it up to me, I would speak with Queen Frigga. Master or not, he has no right...” She took Eidra's hands and squeezed them, “Keep your wits about you, he is dangerous.”

Loki was dressed, standing in his bedchamber when Eidra finally returned, out of breath, having run from the kitchen. His look of disapproval was enough to frighten her senseless as she bowed to him, “Forgive me..”  
“Be silent, woman,” he cut her short but his tone seemed softer than it had earlier, “Had you thought to bring the morning meal with you, it would have saved you from the return trip you will now make. See to it you move with all expedition this time.”   
She started to speak, closed her mouth tight, and scampered out of the room, returning a few minutes later with a tray to find him reclining on the bed, one leg draped over the edge to the floor, his back against the headboard. He had a piece of parchment in his hands, reading. She nudged the door open with her behind, backing into the room to avoid jostling the contents of the tray. He held the parchment high as she set the tray on the bed before him and backed away.  
Loki scanned the tray and picked up an apple, studying it. She stood waiting for him to dismiss her as their eyes met for a second and she looked down at the floor.  
“Did the pallet suit you?” he took a bite of the apple.  
“Milord?”  
He frowned, “Did you sleep well last evening?”   
Her confusion slowed her response but she managed to croak, “I did, Milord, thank you.”  
“Do not lie to me!” The anger in his voice startled her.  
“I..I would not, Milord,” she stammered, backed further from the bed.  
“Then perhaps you should practice an answer ere you speak again.”   
He watched as her eyes flitted up to his, just as quickly away.  
“I awoke once during the night, Milord.”  
He studied the bite mark he'd left in the apple, wondering if she was aware that its twin was exposed at the neck of her gown.  
“You are dismissed.”  
She peered at him, “Milord?”  
“Have you had your morning meal?”  
She shook her head.  
“Then away with you. See that you return within the hour.”

Minutes later she was seated in the staff kitchen, an untouched plate of food before her, Helgi leaning over the table trying to coax her to eat.  
“Come, Eidra. Starving yourself will do no good. Eat.”  
She had set her hands in her lap but now she reached up, pulled a piece from a filet of smoked herring and put it in her mouth.  
“That is it, you will feel better after you have something in your stomach.”  
Eidra gave her a wry smile, “There is little that shall make me feel better. Were I not worried that I would dishonor my father, I would steal back to my village.”  
Helgi stirred the porridge in the bowl and took a spoonful, holding it up to Eidra, “So be it but you shall not get far without nourishment. Come child, eat.”

The rest of the week and the week after that was spent in learning his daily routine. He would ride most mornings, sometimes with Thor, oftentimes alone, along well traveled trails through the forests and small villages dotting the outskirts of the city proper. These few hours were the times Eidra would finish the chores specific to his household, any mending, cleaning, washing. She would then stay with Helgi in the kitchen, helping her cook for the evening meal, or work in the laundry with Artra. When there was extra to be done, Silas would join in. She began to cherish those few hours of hard work with her new found family for that was how she viewed Helgi, Artra, and Silas. Even serious Volsa, who could be made to smile when Helgi would begin to tell her bawdy jokes until she would swat at her with a cloth.  
The darker times came when Loki would return, especially in the week after he had taken her. He could not quite remember what had happened, only vaguely aware he had been a man possessed that night. He would stare at her while she sat by the fire on her pallet, mending or sewing; she had started to make a new dress with some cotton cloth given her by Helgi. She would raise her eyes to catch his stare and quickly look away. One evening, though, at the end of a long day, when she was tired, irritated, she had caught him staring at her once more and she had looked up at him, holding his gaze for a moment longer than usual, then returned to her work.   
She did not see him move from his chair before the fire and the cuff she received knocked her off her pallet, her right ear ringing loudly as he stood above her.  
“Learn your place, wench!”  
She sat up and was about to crawl back to her pallet when he grabbed her by the hair and pulled her backwards, “You will answer me when I speak to you!”  
She shrieked in pain, her anger growing. Even though she knew she was dangerously close to insubordination now, she cried, “What answer would you have me give you?”  
His breath in her ear the tone of his voice, calm and flat, made her flesh crawl, “The same answer you have been giving me this entire week. Yes, Milord.”  
She could feel him hovering over her as he waited.  
“Yes, Milord!” She wailed as he shoved her forward towards the pallet.  
She spun around preparing herself for another blow, surprised to see Loki standing, feet apart, seeming to look right through her. Before he could recover, she had gathered her dress to her and resettled herself on her pallet, hoping her answer had satisfied him. She expected him to take his seat in front of the fire again but with a snort, he turned and headed out to the balcony until she could only make out his silhouette against the rapidly darkening sky. She wiped her nose with the back of her hand, then continued her sewing.   
She had almost forgotten he was still in the room when he was suddenly before her, “Fetch my evening robe for me.”  
She sat her sewing on the pallet and walked to the wardrobe, “Which robe does Milord wish to wear?”  
“It matters not.”  
She chose the green and gold silk robe with gold viper headed buttons, the one that had first caught her eye when he'd shown her his quarters and laid it on the bed. As he drew his tunic over his head, she held out her arms, her eyes downcast. He started to undo his breeches but something stopped him. Reaching for the robe, he pulled it over his head, then reached underneath and drew off his breeches, handing them to her.   
“The weather grows colder by the day. Tomorrow I think I shall have my winter robes brought out. It is the beginning of Haust-mánuðr.”  
He strode over to the fireplace, arms crossed before him. She gathered his clothes to her chest, placing them beside the doors so that she could bring them with her to the laundry in the morning, then returned to her pallet by the fire where Loki still stood, lost in thought.   
She chanced a glance upward then and was struck by him. His troubled expression, his eyes seeing something she could not, his long black hair, free from the leather tieback, framing his face. The robe shimmering in the firelight, flowing around him with the slightest movement, the hem touching the floor making him seem even taller than he was and she hated him. Hated him for his cruelty, his lack of compassion, his insensitivity, his apathy, his unpredictability. His regal bearing, his beauty, his grace. She hated it all. As if from a distance, he spoke with that same flat tone,  
“You shall need heavier garments for the winter months. See to it that they are provided to you.”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
He stood before the fire a minute longer then turned to her as if to speak. She waited, ready and for the first time, it was he who looked away.   
“Milord?” She ventured to help him.  
Her address seemed to bring him back to himself.   
“You will accompany me tomorrow to the stables.”  
“The stables, Milord? What would you have me do there?”  
He walked over to the pallet and leaned over her, “Do you ride?”  
She shook her head, distressed, trying to discern his thoughts.  
“You will learn to do so.”  
“Why, Milord?”  
“Do you question my reason?”  
“Yes, Milord.”   
She waited for his rebuttal and was shocked when he gave a slight chuckle.  
“Then you shall have an answer. You are my personal servant. It is meet that you should know how to ride so as to accompany me on occasion, when I have need of you,” he rubbed his temples, “Now I must retire.”  
She folded her dress and tucked it against the wall behind her pallet, then, crawling beneath the coverlet, pulling it tight around her to shut out the drafts, she lay there, staring into the firelight. She heard Loki sigh, long and deep. She listened, as he seemed about to speak but all she heard was silence and she shut her eyes, imagining what tomorrow would bring.


	3. 3

He walked into the staff kitchen that morning with Eidra in tow and she had blanched to see Helgi and the others scramble to assist him. He had obtained a pair of breeches, a tunic and a pair of boots for her wear and when she looked at him, dumbfounded, he had waved her away with an order to change into them with due haste. She caught Helgi's stare as they left the kitchen.  
Now she stood pressed against the railing at the edge of an open corral as Loki led to her, by the reins, a dark brown horse. He gestured for her to approach but her feet would not immediately move.  
“Come, woman. You try my patience.”   
She inched closer to him until, with a roll of his eyes, he drew the horse closer to her. She gazed up at the massive head, the dark brown eyes watching her, complacent.   
“Come here,” he took her by the arm and swung her around to the left side of the horse, “put your left foot into the stirrup and hold the pommel.” When she stared at him confused, he took her left hand and placed it hard upon a knob at the front of the saddle.   
“Now place your left foot into the stirrup,” He lifted her left foot and slid it into the stirrup. “Now push yourself up and swing your other leg over the saddle and you will have mounted the horse.”   
She held her position until he gave her backside a resounding smack.   
“Up, wench, will you have me stand here all day?”   
She skittered forward, eyes wide, heard him grunt in irritation and it spurred her to action. She pushed her body up with her leg until she could swing the other over. Suddenly she was astride the horse which pranced around nervously at the new weight on its back.   
“Take the reins and I will lead you around the paddock to get you used to the motion. Sit up straight, and hold the reins forward..not that far...yes, right there.”   
She felt the sides of the horse between her thighs, marveled at the feeling of power when the horse snorted and shook its head. As they walked the paddock, Loki's hand at the bridle, he began to talk, though she was unsure whether to respond and so simply listened.  
“I learned to ride almost before I could walk. I recall my brother laughing at me each time I fell from the horse. My spell casting came in useful then and he frequently joined me in the dirt of the paddock.”   
She watched his movement, the way he walked, swaggered even, in the soft dirt and began to relax until he glanced up at her, “Sit up straight, wench! Show confidence or the horse will not obey you.”   
After a few rounds, he started to trot the horse and she began to falter, feeling as if her teeth were going to rattle from her head.   
“Alternate your weight,” he called out, “Ride with the rhythm of the horse's gait. Use the stirrups on the up stride. And the saddle on the down step.”   
She tried to hold the reins, follow his directions but she felt herself slipping, “Milord, please slow down, I cannot do this.”  
He brought the horse to a quick stop and she nearly pitched forward over its neck, holding herself on only by gripping the pommel and yanking the reins.   
“Dismount.”   
When she tilted her head he sighed, “Get off the horse, the same way you mounted him. Push up with your left leg and swing your right leg back off the horse. Hold the reins and the pommel.”  
She alit on the ground and stepped back, gratefully handing him the reins when he held out his hand. He mounted the horse easily and broke into a trot. “Watch me, how I move with the horse, do you see?”  
She was watching the movements of a practiced rider, a man who thoroughly enjoyed being in the saddle and once again, she found herself drawn by his grace and assurance. He brought the horse trotting up to her.   
“Did you pay attention?” He dropped to the ground.  
She nodded and he handed her the reins, “Mount him again,”   
She had put her foot in the stirrup and was about to pull herself up when she heard the sound of voices. She saw Loki turn, his countenance change as he held her progress, heard him mumble, “I thought he had already ridden out this morning.”   
She looked over at him, waiting. He waved her down as Thor and Magnus reached the edge of the paddock.  
“Do mine eyes so deceive me? Brother, are you teaching the servants to ride now? ”  
Loki moved her, shifting his eyes away from the horse. “Does your houseboy not ride with you frequently?”  
“Yes,” Thor laughed, “But he is a boy. He need know how to ride.”  
“Do not let Sif hear you say such a thing. I daresay she can outride you.” Loki mounted the horse again and turned to Eidra. “Return to the palace and see to your chores.”  
“Yes, Milord.” With a bow, she scrambled between the slats of the paddock gate as she listened to Thor's ringing laughter paired with the thundering sound of a horse in full gallop.

It would be a long time before she saw the paddock again. That afternoon, Loki returned, dirty, drenched with sweat and in a foul mood. He threw his tunic on the bed and strode past her into the bath room. She heard the sound of the water starting to flow into the bathing basin but when she made a move forward, intending to assist him, she had to step back as his breeches came flying out of the open door.   
“Bring them to the laundress!” he called to her.   
She heard him step into the basin as she gathered the garments up from the floor. It was then that she happened to notice a good sized tear at the shoulder of the tunic and a thin streak of blood on the fabric. When she showed the shirt to Artra, the portly woman balled it up and threw it into the laundry kettle with a shrug.   
She paused to speak with Helgi, then returned to Loki's chambers. It was quiet when she opened the door. She set a couple extra pieces of wood on the fire and tiptoed to the door of the bathing room, her slippers muffling her steps. He was sitting on the submerged bench, his head back, eyes closed but she doubted he was asleep. She walked back to her pallet and picked up the dress she was working on, soon becoming lost in the stitching and her thoughts, only brought from them when she heard him yell for her.  
“Woman, fetch my robe!”  
She set her dress down and ran into the bathing room where she pulled a linen towel from the wooden shelving and held it up to him as he rose from the water. She stared at her feet until she felt him take the towel from her hands then she scurried from the room ahead of him to fetch a robe from the wardrobe which she handed to him as he reached her.  
“I desire my evening meal here in my rooms,” he drew the robe over his head.  
It was then that she recalled the tear in the shoulder of his tunic.   
“Please, Milord. I noticed that you had a rend in the fabric of your shirt, it looked bloody. Are you injured?”  
His head snapped up and he glared at her, “It is of no matter to you!”   
His hand shot out to cuff her beside the head but this time instinct won out and she ducked, knowing as soon as she'd done it that what was coming was likely to be twice that.  
She turned then and darted for the door.  
“Please, Milord. I will return with your meal, forgive me!”   
She chanced a look back to find him a step behind her and she closed her eyes tightly, feeling for, misjudging the distance to the door as she slammed full force into it, bouncing back into the room. She felt her back hit his legs and in horror realized she was going to knock him to the floor. She scrambled to her hands and knees in an effort to crawl for the door, her fingers scraping the wood of the frame when she felt his hand close around her ankle. She very nearly loosed her bladder as she felt him yank her back towards him. Terror filled her and she shoved his hand from her ankle with her other foot, managing soon after to get it underneath her and push for the door.   
She grabbed the handle with both hands and pulled it open, propelling herself into the corridor with a shriek of fear, almost spilling to the floor again, managing to get herself running towards the spiral staircase at the end of the corridor. Just before she hit the stairs, she she looked back over her shoulder but he was nowhere to be seen. She stumbled down the stairs until she reached the kitchen where Volsa stood, stirring an iron pot over the wood fire. Eidra draped herself over the long kitchen table gasping for breath, a high pitched whine accompanying each intake.   
“What in Valhalla is happened to you?” Volsa put her hands on her hips and stared at Eidra.   
“Oh Volsa,” She cried, “I kicked him!”   
“Kicked who?.....ohhhh.” Volsa looked at the staircase as if expecting Loki to come gliding down the stairs at any time. “What possessed you child?”   
Eidra proceeded to tell Volsa of the whole ordeal while Volsa fixed his tray, pulling the bread from the oven in the side of the fireplace, filling a bowl full of fish stew, taking a jug of fresh milk from the cold cellar.  
“I am frightened, Volsa. He did not chase me because he knows I must return to him.” She looked behind her at the staircase, mirroring Volsa's past concern, “And who knows what he shall do to me when I do.”  
Volsa handed her the tray, “What can you do? Apologize and let him rail, he will spend himself soon enough. From here on out, you would do well to hold your tongue before you end up holding your head.”

All the way down the corridor, her hands shook so that she could barely hold the tray. She pushed the doors open, wondering if he would pounce on her before she could put the tray down. She found him in the chair before the fireplace. His eyes darted to hers but he didn't move. She walked over and stood before him until he gestured with a nod of his head for her to put the tray on the floor beside him. She did so and stood up.   
“To your pallet.”   
His voice was unnaturally even as he reached down, picked up the bowl of stew and began to eat. After a few minutes, she felt relaxed enough to pick up her sewing once again and they sat in silence. Once in a while she would look up at him, or out onto the balcony where it was finally growing dark, then continue her work. She had almost forgotten about the incident until he finished his meal, setting the empty bowl down on the tray with a clatter.  
She glanced up to find him staring at her with a look of pure malice which chilled her heart.   
“It is worse to wait for your punishment is it not?”  
She wanted to cry. She wanted to do or say something that would stop him from hurting her but she knew the futility of such an attempt. On the way to Asgard, she'd had lengthy discussions with her deliverer, her half-brother Danar. He had regaled her with stories of Asgard and the Aesir, of Thor and Loki. She had been relieved to find she was a gift to Thor. Danar had frightened her with his stories of Loki's reputation.   
Now she sat mute, as Loki glided towards her, kneeling down before her, a smile on his face. “Come with me.”   
She thought at first that she was going to be sick on the marble floor before him but she swallowed hard and stood up, following him with mounting horror to his bed. He sat upon the edge and handed her a gold gilded brush with dark bristles. “Brush my hair.”  
“Milord?”  
He took the handle of the brush and forced it into her palm, then patted the bed behind him. “I did not misspeak, wench. Brush my hair.”  
She could hear the amusement in his voice, felt the tears at the corner of her eyes, he was toying with her. She knelt on the bed and positioned herself behind him, her hands hovering inches from the length of hair that, now damp, was well in the middle of his back.   
“What keeps you, woman?” He snapped, though he didn't turn to look at her.  
Honesty won out, “Milord, I am afraid to touch you.”  
“As well you should be, however when it is an order given, you may assume you are safe. Brush my hair.”  
She took a hank of his hair in her hands, observing the ebony sheen, black almost to blue in the right light, reflecting the golden orange glow of the torches on either side of the bed. She drew the brush through his hair slowly, carefully, until she reached the end, returned to the top and drew it down through another hank. She could sense the tension in his body, in his posture, and she wondered why he was waiting, why he didn't simply dispense his justice and be done with it. She noticed then that he had indeed sustained a cut. It was wide but cleaned and clearly visible at his shoulder, partly covered by his robe. She sighed to herself, if he was going to punish her for her original question, she might as well restate it, perhaps she would spur him to action.  
“Please, Milord. You did sustain an injury today. It looks to need a physician's care.”  
She braced herself but he merely raised his hand and touched the cut gingerly, “Does it indeed?”  
“Perhaps a length of sinew to close the cut.” She gave his hair a few more strokes with the brush and he put his hand up.   
“Fetch Clotho.”  
She put the brush down on the bed, hopped to the floor and fled from the room to the staff kitchen. Finding it empty, she continued down the hall into another part of the palace she'd never been. The corridors branched out as she wandered, unsure where to go until at length she found a royal guard, his helmet in hand as he strode past her and she held up her hands to stop him.  
“Please, I must find Clotho for Lord Loki but I do not know where to go.”   
The guard appraised her and nodded, “Follow me.”  
They found the court physician hunched over a tome in his quarters, reading by candlelight.   
He was a thin stick of a man sporting a grizzled beard, completely bald atop his head with a rim of white hair around from side to side at his jaw. He stood as they entered and tied the belt of his tunic.   
“This servant girl wishes to speak with you,” The guard announced as Eidra stepped forward.   
“Lord Loki has cut himself while riding this afternoon and it is a deep cut indeed. Perhaps a few stitches will be needed.”  
The physician chuckled, “Are you looking to replace me, young lady?”  
“Oh no, I meant no impertinence...”  
But Clotho was already at a long set of shelves, gathering a bottle, a cloth and a small box.   
“We shall see if the young prince needs tending to, but perhaps we should stop and gather a flagon of wine ere we treat him. It would put him in a more tractable mood.”  
She shivered at the memory of the last time she had seen Loki drunk, “If it must be, then it must be.”  
She followed Clotho, who moved with a speed belying his years as he sped down the corridor. She was careful to note the return path, determined to learn the maze of hallways in the palace.  
At Loki's chamber door, Clotho knocked once and walked in. Loki was standing in front of the fireplace, hands at his side.  
“Loki,” Clotho cried, “What accident has befallen you now? Might his name be Thor?” Eidra stood frozen, eyes wide at the familiarity with which Clotho addressed him but Loki merely smirked,  
“He knocked me from my mount today while we were racing. I struck a rock. He was angry because I won the race.”  
Clotho guided the young prince to the chair before the fire and waved a hand at him, “Where is the damage, then?”  
Loki gestured to his right shoulder and tilted his head to allow the old man access. Clotho gestured to Eidra.  
“Come child, pour some wine into the chalice.”  
She handed him the chalice of wine and watched as he put it in Loki's hand. “Drink this, let the warmth relax you. I must stitch the wound.”  
Clotho sat on a stool at Loki's side while he drank the wine and they chatted about events at court, the latest meeting of the High Council, until at last he'd drained the chalice.   
“More?” Clotho looked to Eidra.  
“No, I wish to be done with this, I grow tired.” Loki dropped the robe from his shoulder and turned his head away. “You may begin.”  
As Clotho punctured the skin at the edge of the cut, she could see Loki clench his teeth together and shut his eyes. His fingers curled over the arms of the chair, his knuckles white, his breathing heavy but he was otherwise silent, though he flinched with each stab of the needle. Finally, Clotho wound the sinew around into a knot, took a small set of scissors and cut the excess close. “That should heal well but you will have a scar.”  
“One among many. You have my gratitude.” He stood from the chair, flexing his arm to test the stitches.  
“Now I shall take my leave. It is an exceeding late hour for me to be out and about. My old bones ache with the coming winter. Sleep well.” Clotho nodded to Eidra as he passed, the door closed, and they were left alone.  
Loki walked to the bed and pulled down the covers. “Tomorrow I must pack. In three days time, my brother, myself and a contingent are to travel the realm gathering the year's supply of wine and mead. Father says it allows us to visit our subjects, yet he stays here in the palace,” Loki groused,“I shall be gone for two weeks, until Mabon. While I travel, you may serve in the staff kitchen.”  
“Please, Milord. Who will attend you while you are absent?”   
“Young Silas is more suited to a campaign such as this. A camp full of soldiers is no place for a woman. It incites them to lust, clouds their minds. Do you ken?”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
“Get thee to your pallet, then. I am tired,” he climbed into his bed beneath his covers and settled in and yet she found she still couldn't keep her tongue.  
“Milord?”  
“Mmm.”  
“Why did you not punish me?”  
There was silence from the bed, then, “Your assessment of my injury was correct. Therefore I shall overlook your indiscretion. Now go to sleep, woman.”  
“Yes, Milord.”


	4. 4

He ordered Eidra to pack his garments and ceremonial armor in his trunks the following day, first having to show her how to do so properly, all the while mumbling to himself that it would have been easier had he simply done it himself.   
Thor cornered him that evening after they'd set in attendance at a High Council meeting.   
“Brother, come with me to the sauna this evening, we will talk of the impending trip.”  
Loki peered at him,“We shall have two weeks to talk of the trip while we are on it.”  
But Thor would not be discouraged and he finally gave in, following him through the palace, past the arboretum, to the communal baths just outside the palace gates. Once inside the columned building, attendants handed them towels and bowed as they passed by on their way to the long wooden sauna. They disrobed at the benches just outside the door and wrapped the towels around their waists.  
Thor sat down and leaned back on one of the wooden benches, his hands behind his head, a beatific smile on his face. Loki closed his eyes and let the steam relax his muscles, for once sure his oaf of a brother had given birth to a good idea when Thor elbowed him.   
“How fair you with your prize?”  
Loki looked to Thor, then away.  
“Have you had her already?”   
Loki gritted his teeth as Thor elbowed him again, “You have! What is she like, brother? Is she as skilled as she is beautiful?”  
“I do not know,” his voice was low, almost a whisper.  
“What? How can you not know what she is like?”  
“I do not remember!” Loki retorted a bit louder, irritated.  
“How...”  
“It was the night of the marking ceremony, I was drunk, I do not remember.”  
“Then how do you know it truly happened?”  
“I know.”  
Thor sat there a minute, “We must jog your memory. Come, we shall share her tonight.”  
Loki swiveled on the bench to face him, “Why must I share her? Have you not any number of women to choose from in the palace?”  
“Are you worried that she will ask to be given to me afterward? “ Thor laughed, “You have not practiced your spells as of late. Perhaps you could enchant her so that she would love none but you.”  
“I do not wish for love!” Loki spat, “I desire a hand maiden....”  
“Wise choice of words, brother,” Thor interjected,   
“.....who will serve me, whether it be to see to my daily needs, mend my clothes, or fill my chalice and that is what I have. That I took her when I did was governed by lust born up by wine.”  
“You must be fair, Loki. Would you bear another contest with her as the prize?”  
“No!”  
“Then I shall be at your chambers after the evening repast. Trust me, brother. It will be a night to remember.”  
Thor patted him on the shoulder and he winced in pain at the rub against his stitches. He watched Thor leave the sauna with a smile. He stayed seated, brooding. The talk of sharing his servant had revolted him. For nearly a month now she had sat, a silent companion on her pallet, sewing or mending. She had learned her chores well, anticipating his daily needs as if she'd always been there. One time or another he had gone to speak to her, then remembering she was but a servant, he had stopped himself. At the very least, he allowed, she alleviated the crushing loneliness he was often beset by.   
He would need to leave soon, he dreaded the thought of Thor arriving at his quarters before he did. He rose from the bench, opened the sauna door and hurried out into the bath house.

Eidra had cleared away the evening meal tray from his bed chamber, grabbing a quick bite in the kitchen. When she returned, she found Loki already in his evening robe, pacing the floor. She was about to ask if he needed anything when there came a knock on the door. She turned around as the door swung open and Thor strode into the room, past her to his brother who now stood stock still. Thor whispered something in Loki's ear that made his eyes close, his mouth fall open. Thor unlaced the tie at the front of his robe and turned towards Eidra.   
“Come here, wench, let me look at you,” Thor advanced towards her, taking her hand in his and leading her to Loki who remained rooted to the spot, staring at him. Thor rubbed the palms of his hands down the front of his breeches. Eidra kept her gaze trained to the floor until she felt Thor's hands steal from behind her to cup her breasts, finding the buds beneath the fabric and rolling them between thumb and forefinger.   
“She is a fine woman, Loki.”   
Her eyes grew wide then as she looked up, catching Loki's expression, a mixture of lust and shock upon his face as he looked away from the scene before him. Seizing the opportunity, she shoved herself backwards with all the force she could muster, throwing Thor off balance, causing him to momentarily loosen his grip as she shot forward past Loki to hide behind him as Thor regained his footing.   
“Please, Milord.....!” she cried, breathless.   
Loki spun around to see her cringing behind him, then back to Thor who wore a satisfied smirk on his face, “Perhaps you have used your spells already, brother?”  
Loki sneered at Thor's remark, grabbing Eidra hard by the shoulder, squeezing until she yelped. He leaned over, growling in her ear, “You will submit to my brother or answer to me, whore!”  
She knew then that they were both of the same mind. He made to shove her to Thor's waiting arms but she dropped beneath meaty arms and ran straight at the doors, causing them to slam open as she fled from the room. Loki and Thor exchanged glances and started after her.  
She was running as fast as her legs could carry her, so intent on watching behind her that she nearly bowled over the stately woman who had stepped from a room along the corridor.   
“Odin's beard, whatever is wrong, child?”  
The sound of fast footsteps coming towards them loosened her tongue, “Please, Milady. I beg of you, hide me!”  
The footsteps halted behind her as she clung desperately to the woman's legs, trembling, afraid to face the two men behind her.  
“What in the name of the Almighty Allfather are you boys doing to this poor woman?”  
Thor looked to Loki but Loki could only glare at Eidra.  
Thor made light of the encounter, waving to Eidra “We were having a bit of fun. She is a servant, Mother. We were only toying with her.” but Frigga read through him.  
Frigga gazed down at Eidra who was now looking back at the two men.“Is that true, child?” “Yes, Your Majesty, I simply became scared and ran.” Eidra touched her forehead to Frigga's slippers, felt a gentle hand on her shoulder  
“Rise, my dear.”  
She rose to her feet and Frigga pulled her close, stroking her hair as she glared at Thor.  
“This woman was a gift to your household but you made a bet and you lost her. Do not think I have not heard of your escapades, ” she glared at Loki, “And you. Loki, you should bring her to Odin, she may serve in the Great Hall. It would be better than fighting off the two of you.”  
Loki could not keep his eyes upon her, instead training them on his bare feet.   
“Would you rather be given a position in the kitchen?” Frigga gestured to the two men, “Or return to Thor or Loki. The choice is up to you.”  
She shook her head, “I do not wish to work in the kitchens.”  
Frigga paused, “Very well, then choose the master you wish to serve.”  
Eidra glided to Loki's side, trying to hide from Thor's stare.   
“So be it. My sons, you do dishonor our loyal servants with your play. Mind yourselves in the future or your father shall hear of it.”  
Thor and Loki bowed as Frigga headed away from them down the corridor. They started in the opposite direction back towards Loki's quarters, Eidra following close behind. When they reached the doors, Thor clapped him on the back.   
“Now we shall teach her how to obey us!”  
Loki whirled on him, “No, she is mine to discipline. Leave us be!”  
Thor scowled at Eidra, then at Loki, grumbled, “As you wish, brother,” and stalked away down the corridor.   
Once inside the bed chamber, Loki closed the door. Catching Eidra before she could turn to him, he took her by the back of her dress and sent her flying to the floor.  
“Run from me again, whore and I shall personally stripe your back with my lash.”  
The hard marble of the floor tore at her skin. She got to her hands and knees, gasping. She knew she would have been better off in the kitchen, but fear of what he would do if she chose that option had made her return to his side. The treatment she was receiving now, however, served to push her to her very limits and she stood up.   
“Eidra!” she shouted as he strode toward her. He skidded to a halt.  
“What?”  
“My name is Eidra, it is not whore, or wench. It is Eidra!”   
By the time she had finished her sentence, he was at her, the back of his hand across her face splitting her lip. She staggered back, a hand to her mouth.  
“I will call you whore if it pleases me, do not speak without my permission again!”   
She saw the madness in his eyes now and it only fueled her own.  
“You are a cruel master, ” she shouted, backing away from him, tasting copper as the blood from her lip stained her tongue, “You have darkness, hatred, in your soul!” she struck her chest above her heart.   
“Because It is my right to discipline a disobedient servant?” He was before her again and made to grab for her but she darted backwards toward the balcony.  
“I have served you well and you would punish me for not giving myself to your brother? Your heart is made of stone!”   
She could see the tall columns rising to the ceiling behind Loki and realized how close to the railing she was. She had stared into the depths of the river running past the sheer cliffs upon which the palace set many times. She wondered then, if she would die before she struck bottom. She turned, leaped to the top of the railing and pushed outward. All at once, she felt an catch her at the waist, snatching her from the air beyond the railing. She hit the balcony floor hard enough to knock the breath from her, sparkles floated across her vision and for a moment she feared she would faint away. Loki flipped her over on her back pinning her down as he crouched over her, trembling with rage.  
“If death be preferable to serving me, I shall choose how you meet it.”  
He took her by the wrists, dragging her toward the railing again where he loosened the cord belt around his robe, knotting it first around one wrist, slinging it around one fat pillar of the railing and tying her other wrist so that she half sat, half lay on the floor, hugging the pillar like an old dear friend.  
“I shall leave you to ponder your fate until morning,” He stood back from her, hands clenched into fists, trembling as if they had need of something to do. He spun around without another word and walked back into the warmth of the room. She had started to shiver as he stood above her, now she felt the tears let loose. She pressed her face to the pillar and sobbed, her tears trickling down the column to wet her bodice.

Loki lay there for a long time staring out at the balcony until the light from the fireplace died down and he could no longer see her. It had been quiet for some time. He rose from the bed, walked to her pallet and took up her coverlet, making his way out to the balcony where she had slumped forward in a fitful sleep, her head lolling to one side on her shoulder. He draped the coverlet over and around her body, his fingers brushing the handle of his dagger as he considered cutting her free. Giving a low growl at his moment of weakness, he returned to his own bed, falling into an unsettled sleep.

Frigga tilted her head forward as her lady in waiting, Tamarin, undid the diamond and emerald necklace, easing it from her neck.  
“ Does my husband still see to the preparations for the trip?”  
Tamarin bowed, “Yes, my Queen.”   
She set the necklace carefully in a wooden box atop the dressing table, latching it closed before she carried it to a trunk at the end of the bed on which Frigga now sat.  
Frigga stood, turned her back to Tamarin so she could unbutton her gown, easing it to the floor for Frigga to step out of. While Tamarin saw to the gown, she drew her evening robe over her head, adding the bed jacket that had been laying beside the robe on the coverlet. The older she became, the more sharply she felt the cold.  
She watched faithful Tamarin fold her dress, place it gently in her woven basket to bring to the laundress then return to kneel before her, “Let me remove your slippers and tend to your feet.”  
Frigga sighed and sat back down upon the bed as Tamarin slipped off the confining footwear. She wiggled her toes with relief. “Were it we could go barefoot in a peasant's dress at all times.”  
“What would become of the finery in your wardrobe?”  
“It would moulder,”she tapped her chin thoughtfully, “Except for the jade green piece. The seamstress who wrought that one was a miracle worker.”  
Tamarin shook her head as she kneaded Frigga's tired feet, “The kingdom must have a king and queen arrayed in glory to look upon. Clothes make the person, I have heard said.”  
Frigga shook her head, “ 'Tis the person makes the clothes.”   
She leaned back on her hands paused, then looked down at Tamarin, “Would you answer me truthfully were I to ask a question?”  
Tamarin glanced up at Frigga, “My Queen, I would answer as honestly as I were able to.”  
“Have I indulged my sons far too much?”  
Tamarin pursed her lips, “Tell me what my Queen considers indulgences.”  
Frigga lay her hands in her lap, “Ignoring their escapades, their affronts. Making no effort to take them to task for their indiscretions?”  
Tamarin patted her feet and stood up, “Discipline is a task for the Allfather is it not?”  
“Should they not answer to me as well?”  
Tamarin tilted her head, “Does something trouble my Queen?”  
Frigga thought of the frightened girl at her feet. Her two sons standing before her breathless. Thor was infamous for his overzealous pursuit of women. Loki was equally infamous for treating his servants with cruelty, a trait which broke her heart. She had hoped she would find nurture a balm to his true nature but it seemed he was destined to travel his own path.  
“Nothing troubles me, Tamarin. I was merely pensive. You may go. I am going to retire for the evening.”  
Tamarin bowed and Frigga rested her hand atop her loyal handmaid's head, “Thank you, my friend, for listening to the ravings of an old woman.”  
Tamarin stood and smiled, “I am ever yours, Your Majesty.”

 

Eidra had been dreaming about home. Dreaming that she was back in her father's household playing a game of dice with him on the kitchen floor, one of the cats curled up in her lap. The dice had become heavier and heavier as she played until her arms ached with the effort of lifting them. The pain roused her from sleep.   
Her arms were on fire. The shoulder sockets were numb, her elbows and wrists alive with pins and needles and her back ached with the strain. She wanted to call out to him to end her suffering but she was afraid to wake him. She tried to sit up further to ease the strain on her back, grimaced with the pain, felt a sting at her lip as it split anew. Sliding the cord further up the pillar to where it tapered down a bit, she felt something slip down her back to her hips. She could turn her head just enough to see that it was the coverlet from her pallet. She could not recall bringing it with her. Had Silas come to the chambers in the middle of the night? Rather it had crawled to her itself because any other explanation was impossible to comprehend.  
She heard the creak of a door hinge, then footsteps and knew it was all about to end. She craned her neck about just in time to see him striding across the floor towards her, hair wild about his head, his robe flowing behind him. He knelt down in front of her, lips tight together, lifted the right side of his robe and withdrew the long dagger from his thigh holster.  
“I have decided you shall have a choice.”  
He put his hand to the back of her head, fingers gripping a hank of her mahogany hair. Tugging her head back, he placed the blade of the knife to the side of her neck and pressed it there just hard enough for the edge to start searing into the skin.   
“Would you have me slit your throat to die, drowning in your own blood?” he pulled the knife away, brought it around behind her back and tilted her head forward, the point of the blade atop the vertebrae at the nape of her neck. She stared at his chest, refusing to raise her eyes to his.   
“Or would you rather I plunged my knife through your spine, cutting that precious thread swiftly, speeding you on your way to Hel? It would be far more merciful.”   
He had leaned forward, his breath heavy in her ear like a lover. She waited, not caring which method he wished to visit on her, simply closed her eyes knowing her pleas would fall on deaf ears. Finally the tip of the knife stuttered across the knobs of her spine and she winced with the pressure, felt the blade leave her skin as he backed from her. She looked up to see he'd raised the knife high. She turned her head away from him, unwilling to let the last thing she saw in this world be his face. Suddenly her arms dropped away from the pillar as the cord gave way. She cried out with relief, pulling her arms slowly to her body as the blood began to throb back into them.  
He stood up then, watched her for a minute as she sat back on the floor rubbing the blood into her legs.   
“I would not deign to sully my blade with your blood. Get up, see to your chores. Lay out my garments.”  
He turned, started to walk across the balcony into the bedroom as she rose on clumsy feet. It was then that she felt the length of cord still dangling from her wrist. She lifted her arm and flexed her hand, about to untie the knot there when she looked up at him. His back was to her. Before the thought was fully formed, she had started to stride towards him, as the feeling returned to her feet, she started to sprint, the other end of the slice now firmly in the opposite hand. She reached up, looping the cord around his throat and started to twist it tightly, throwing her weight backward to upset his balance.   
His hands flew to his neck. She could hear him start to choke, grasping at the cord, his knees buckling beneath him. He pitched forward to his hands as she tightened the rope further, her legs astride his back when a sound reached her ears, making the hair stand up at her neck and she considered making the leap for the balcony railing yet again.   
He was laughing.  
His hand gripped the cord and yanked it from his throat hard enough to throw her to her side on the floor beside him. He lifted her up by the rope still tied to her wrist until they were facing each other on their knees.   
“Your strength is no match for mine. You wish to speed me to my death...,” he withdrew his dagger once again, this time wrapping her fingers around the handle, covering them with his own and placing the tip against his chest just above his heart, “I shall help you.”  
He began to put pressure on the knife even as she sought to pull her hand free, suddenly horrified at the thought of ending someone's life, even his, wondering now how she had ever managed to draw the cord around his neck.   
“Come now, you were ready to stop the breath in my throat, now you hesitate? You lack conviction. Stab me through the heart and I could lie here for hours. You could be well away from here.”   
She looked up at his face, his eyes staring into her very soul.   
“You are not the first to wish for my death and you will not be the last,” A tear sprang unbidden, rolling down his cheek to quiver at his chin and she looked away, redoubling her effort to release the knife in her hand. All at once, strength seemed to fail him, his body collapsing into itself until he'd nearly draped himself over her arm.  
“It would then seem that we must both live to see another day,” he muttered as his hand relaxed over hers. She pulled her own hand free, scrambling back from him until he reached out, catching the trailing cord and yanking her towards him.   
“Stop struggling,” he set the knife on the floor beside him, his fingers working the knot at one wrist until one hand was free, then the other. He gathered up the cut cord and the knife and rose from the floor.   
“Come, Eidra. We have wasted enough time today. Fetch the morning meal,” his voice was low, almost sad   
She remained where she had fallen, stunned, immobile until he pointed toward the door, “Up, woman. Must I tell you again?”  
She scrambled to her feet and ran from the room towards the kitchens with one thought spurring her forward. He had said her name.


	5. 5

That afternoon while Loki was out for his ride, she had seen that his trunks were well packed for his trip. She then sought out Helgi, telling her of the events of that had unfolded the night before. Though she knew she should keep some secrets, she needed to pour her heart out to someone who at least shared in her sympathy.  
“Pray to the gods he comes back in better spirits,” Helgi advised her, “You can help us with the final harvests in the fields, we will have a blot when they return with the year's new mead and wine. If his mood remains black, beg the Queen to let you stay in the kitchens. It will be safer for you. Now rest easy child.”  
“I told him my name was Eidra,” she tilted the bowl of broth to her lips and sipped it.   
“And?”  
“And he addressed me by my name. Perhaps he will continue. I grow so tired of being called wench and whore.”  
Helgi shook her head, “Even the basest worker in the field has some semblance of manners. He shames the royal family.”  
“I believe he is unhappy.”  
Helgi whirled around, pointing the poker at her with which she'd been prodding the fire “He is unhappy of his own volition. Do not entertain such thoughts. He chooses the life he leads, my child. He is not worthy of your sympathy.”  
Eidra said nothing, simply drained her bowl and brought it to the wash tub at the end of the table. “I must go fetch his morning tray, I left it in his room.”  
“When you return, we shall walk out to the fields. 

After she returned from Loki's quarters with the tray, Helgi took her shawl from a peg near the archway and wrapped it around her shoulders.   
“The air is cool today, do you not have a wrap for your self?”   
Eidra shook her head, “I do not.”  
Helgi took another wrap down from the pegs. “We shall have to get you one for your own. The palace gets cold in the winter.”

Eidra followed Helgi through the halls and into the arboretum where she marveled at the profusion of exotic flowers and plants, brightly plumed birds, fountains. She stopped to smell one particularly beautiful small white bloom. Helgi saw her, picked a blossom and tucked it behind her ear. “You are a lovely child, but then the light elves are a beautiful race.”  
“I wonder if the humans are as well.”Eidra murmured, stroking the soft petals of the flower in her hair.  
“I do not know child, there have been but a handful of humans who have seen the realm of Asgard and I have seen not a one of them. I hear tell they believe little of the ancient ways anymore and that is why we seldom travel to Midgard. It is all but dead to us now.”  
Helgi opened a set of tall glass doors at the far end of the arboretum and they headed down a path tramped out in the tall grass from many feet. “I prefer the short cut through the arboretum to see the flowers and hear the beautiful birdsong.”  
Eidra held her hands out at her sides, letting them drift over the tops of the grass stalks. “I asked my father once how he came to find my mother when he lived on Asgard and he would only tell me that he met her when he traveled to Midgard on a night the humans called 'All Hallow's Eve'. My father told me that in ancient times, it was called Samhain. Now it serves as a night of frolic for the humans. It involves wearing a costume so that one may not know their own people. The Midgardians believed the costumes would protect them from harmful spirits and fairies,” here she giggled, “It afforded my mother no protection from my father.”  
“Costumes? Like a masquerade? How curious.” Helgi shaded her eyes and scanned the fields before her where a group of workers were busy digging up root vegetables. They stopped among them and Eidra bent over to pick up a carrot. It was big and bright orange, speckled with clods of dirt. She put it to her nose.   
“I have always loved the smell of the harvest,” she put the carrot in a wide woven basket, picked another one out of a basket beside it and turned it over in her hands, curious, “It is white.”  
“It is a parsnip my dear,” The woman kneeling beside the basket with a spade in her hand smiled up at her, “It is like a carrot but sweeter.”   
Eidra touched Helgi's arm, “I have never had one before.”  
“Parsnips must be cooked. I will make some this evening as a dish with the meal.”  
They continued down the field towards a large grove of trees where another group were busy in the tree tops picking apples and lowering them in baskets to the ground below. Eidra broke into a run, laughing.   
“My home in Alfheim has a small apple orchard, we used to make cider every harvest and dry apples for pies. Our root cellar had bins of apples,” she breathed to Helgi. “Might I have one?”  
Helgi took an apple out of the nearest basket and handed it to her but she didn't immediately bite into it, holding it close, breathing in its sharp scent, “It smells like home.”  
Helgi clasped her hands over her round belly, watching the young woman, her eyes closed, a smile on her lips and she felt such an outpouring of love for her that it fair brought tears to her eyes.  
“We will make a pie tomorrow after Lord Loki and Lord Thor leave with their retinue,” Helgi murmured, laughing when Eidra clasped her arms around her neck and hugged her.  
“Helgi,” one of the workers called to her, “Is she one of your new workers?”   
Helgi squinted into the sun and walked towards the voice until she could make out young Malek, Silas's older brother, in the lower branches of the tree before them.  
“She will be helping me for the next two weeks in the kitchens and the laundry. She is Lord Loki's house servant.”  
Malek nearly dropped the basket he was holding, “You serve Loki?”  
Helgi frowned at Malek and put a finger to her lips, “Lord Loki you foolish boy. Do you wish to be flogged? Only let someone hear you and you may be sure to receive at least ten lashes.”  
Malek laughed, lowered the basket of apples to the ground and climbed down from the branches.   
“I am hardly afraid of him. Is he here? No. Will the two of you tell him of my indiscretion?”  
He looked at Eidra, “Maybe, but what are ten lashes to me? I have had my fair share, my back is nearly numb now.”  
He held out his hand to Eidra who put hers out as well. He took her hand in his and bussed the top lightly, “Do you have a beautiful name to match?”  
She pulled her hand away and shrank a bit towards Helgi. “My name is Eidra.”  
He bowed in response, “My name is Malek.”   
Comprehension seemed suddenly to dawn upon his face, “My brother told me about Loki's new hand maiden, how Loki...” Malek looked to Helgi, “How Lord Loki treated her so poorly when she first arrived here in Asgard. Are you one and the same?”  
Eidra gave a quick nod, now practically beneath Helgi's right arm.   
“I will not bite. What scares you so? Am I truly hideous to look upon?”  
Helgi narrowed her eyes at Malek, “You will end up scaring her ere you keep talking to her like that.”   
Malek laughed at her, took another apple and approached Eidra who seemed ready to burrow into Helgi's side.   
“Here you may have another apple on account. Truly, what frightens you so?”  
He looked up at Helgi who was now gazing past Malek's head to the figure who had walked his horse up behind him. Malek looked curiously at them. All at once, he felt a tap on his shoulder, looked to his left and saw the tip of a riding crop resting there. He stood up but didn't turn until the owner of the riding crop tapped his shoulder once again.  
Loki stared down at the young servant from high atop his steed.   
“Malek.”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
“My maid servant cowers beside my cook,” The tip of the riding crop hovered against Malek's cheek, “Might I inquire what you have done to scare her so?”  
“Nothing, Milord. I asked her name...”   
Loki waited.  
“...And then I offered her an apple.”  
When Loki dismounted and glanced at Helgi, Eidra hid her face against the soft knit of Helgi's shawl.  
. “Does this man speak the truth?”  
Helgi started to open her mouth but Loki put a hand on Malek's shoulder, the riding crop back at his cheek. “Is that all you have done?”  
Malek had looked straight ahead at first, but his eyes flickered to Loki's for a second. “Yes, Milord.”  
“You did not touch her?”   
Malek stared at the field over Loki's shoulder.  
His teeth bared, Loki reared back with the riding crop and brought it full force across Malek's cheek, slicing into the flesh in a jagged tear.   
Malek's hand flew up to his face, his mouth open in an O. Loki knocked his hand away and grabbed him by the chin, blood trickling over his fingers as he shook Malek's face.  
“Did you touch my maid servant?!” Loki shouted at him.  
“Yes, Milord!” Came his shout as loud in return.  
Eidra ventured to peek at the scene from behind Helgi's back, watching as Loki took Malek's hand in his.   
“Did you take her hand thus?”  
Malek nodded and Loki smiled over his shoulder at them, “Ah, progress.”  
He looked at Malek again, “And then?”  
“I kissed her hand.” Malek's voice was barely a whisper.  
Loki looked to Helgi, catching Eidra's stare and his smile widened. Eidra was alarmed to find no mirth there, however, only malice.  
He swung his gaze back to Malek and started to squeeze his hand harder, harder still until Malek cried out in pain.  
“Please, Milord!” Eidra called out. “He did not hurt me. He was only introducing himself.”   
Loki stopped, looked to where Eidra stood now, beside Helgi.   
“Milord, with a broken hand, he is of no use in the fields.”  
Loki narrowed his eyes at Malek as he released his hand, watching the young man pull his injured hand to his chest.  
“Today, you have been blessed with fortune,” Loki reached around to the back of Malek's shirt and spun him around, “You will thank the deliverer of that fortune properly.”   
He tossed Malek to the ground in front of Helgi and Eidra. “Go on, you whoreson! Thank her!”   
“Thank you!” Malek cried out.  
Loki knelt in the grass beside Malek, snatching a handful of his shirt and pulling him up to his knees.  
“For what, whelp?”  
“I do not know!”   
“Thank her, that you still have use of your hand!” Loki growled in his ear.  
Eidra felt profoundly sorry for Malek; she had been on the receiving end of Loki's rage before.  
“Thank you for the use of my hand.” Malek was shaking, terrified.   
“Answer him, Eidra,” Helgi prompted her.  
“You are welcome,” Eidra looked away from Malek as she responded.  
Loki loosed his hand from Malek's collar for a moment, then his grip tightened on it again, hauling him up from the ground as he stood.   
“Do not touch her, do not cast an eye towards her, do not wave in her direction, do not dare so much as to think of her. If I find you again in her presence, I shall personally flog you myself. Ken?”  
“I ken, Milord.”   
When Loki finally let go of him, Malek backed away, starting off at a lope past Eidra and Helgi, down the path in the direction they had come from. Loki bent down and picked up his riding crop.  
“Helgi,”  
“Yes, Milord,” She bowed to him.  
“I do not wish Eidra to work in the fields while I am absent. You will occupy her within the palace.”   
“Yes, Milord.”  
He turned to Eidra now who had her hands clasped before her, eyes at her feet.   
“Eidra, you will obey me. Stay away from the fields. You are a servant of the palace. These workers are below your station.”   
Eidra glanced up at Loki, a quick peek, “Please, Milord. May I still work with Helgi, Volsa, and Artra?”  
He gave her a lopsided grin, “Yes, they work in the palace do they not? Thus they are palace servants.”  
Then his countenance became serious again as he waved the crop in Helgi's direction, “Helgi, I charge you with her safety while I am away.”  
“I will watch over her as if she were my own child, Milord.”  
“See that you do,” He nodded to Eidra, “I will return to the palace. Make haste to do likewise.”  
He mounted his horse, pulled the reins right and galloped up the path, leaving them both standing there, stunned.  
“My child, I have never seen Lord Loki act in such a manner,” Helgi kept staring at the path he'd ridden down.  
“He has acted in such a manner with me. What startles you so?”  
Helgi guided her down the path towards the palace, “No child, it is not that.”  
Helgi huffed and puffed as they trotted past the workers digging up the carrots. Malek was nowhere to be seen. They reached the door into the arboretum but before she opened the door, she took Eidra's hands in hers.   
“I have never seen Lord Loki come to the defense of a servant before. Not even his personal house servants. I fear for you, my poppet.”  
“Should you not be happy for me? Perhaps he will be gentler from now on.”  
“To bring his attention to bear on you is dangerous whether it be good or bad. The higher he places you, the more severe the punishment should you fail him. He also has enemies within the palace who would use you to bring him low were they to hear of his actions today. I must ply Malek somehow to keep his tongue still,” Helgi opened the door and let her inside.   
As they made their way through the arboretum, startling a pair of lovebirds into flight, Helgi cast her a backward glance. “Trust no one when you are so close to such a man.”  
“Helgi, I am but his maidservant. You see more than what is there. Have no fear.”  
Helgi gave her a wavering grin which Eidra returned. If she had been in doubt as to what had happened, if she had not seen it with her own eyes, she would have thought it was all a dream. If she could have put a name to his reaction, though she would dare not speak it aloud, and she only half believed it herself, she would have called it jealousy.


	6. 6

Eidra had taken Loki his evening meal and he had told her to attend to hers for which she was grateful. After preparing the staff meals, Helgi had taken a piece of butter and put it in a pan atop an iron spider inside the fireplace, slicing into it some parsnips from the field.   
Eidra watched her, marking everything she did, the time she took waiting for the parsnips to cook, how she stirred them, tested them to see if they were done. In her father's household, she'd been merely a chamber maid, making the beds, emptying the chamber pots, doing the laundry and other chores like sweeping and mopping when she was called upon. Here, the lowest jobs like the chamber pots were done by Silas, the houseboy. The one place she had never been allowed to help was in her family's kitchen because of her stepmother. Full-blooded Alfari like her father, she claimed Eidra would taint the food because she was half-human.   
Thus, cooking was new to her and she was eager to learn. The time Lord Loki spent away was going to be a chance to do just that.  
While Helgi looked on happily, she ate near half the pan of parsnips, savoring their earthy sweetness before she realized she'd been in the kitchen far too long.  
“God's, Helgi, he will be finished with his meal and waiting for me.” She cried as she put her wooden bowl into the wash basin, “I will be back.”

Loki, was sitting in his chair before the fire, the tray on the floor beside him. He looked up as she came running through the door.   
“Forgive me, Milord. I did not heed the time,” She gathered the tray and was about to cross the threshold into the corridor when Loki spoke.  
“When you return, draw water for me. I require a bath to wash off the dust of the afternoon's ride before I retire tonight. We set out at dawn on the morrow.”   
When she returned to the room, Silas was there. He'd brought two smaller braziers into the bath room. Loki was standing there by the bedside, undressed to the waist and he nodded in her direction.   
“Make haste, I wish to be abed before midnight.”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
She started the water running. The coals in the braziers warmed the marble floors, casting a reddish glow, offsetting the golden light of the torchieres. The steam from the water began to permeate the room. She watched the water flow, letting the heat relax her, allowing her mind to wander, startled when she heard Loki's voice.   
“The basin is full enough.”   
She reached out and pulled the handle to stop the flow, being careful to avert her eyes as she heard him step into the water. When she rose to leave the room, Loki called her back, “Stay here Eidra, I desire company.”  
She stopped. When they would sit by the fire, she sewing, he staring into the fire, reading or writing correspondence, they rarely spoke .She often sensed he was beset by crushing loneliness though she wouldn't dare give voice to such an observation. She would let him draw her into conversation if he wished to and even then they only spoke of the most trivial things, the agenda for the following day, what clothes he wished laid out that morning. Never did he speak of personal matters. She thought about asking if she could fetch her sewing as she was starting a heavier winter dress and she feared nodding off in the soothing steam heat.  
“Take the stool beside the stand and sit.”  
She walked to the stool, dragged it over to the wall so that she could only see to the edge of the basin, and sat down, her knees drawn to her chest, smoothing the skirt down with her arms.  
“Tell me of your heritage.”  
“Milord?” She tilted her head. Did he really wish her to talk about herself?  
“Your heritage, woman. From whence you came. Speak.”  
She hesitated, pushed her hair from her face and studied the marble floor. Surely he knew such things.  
“How is it that at times you will not be silenced and now I must pry your words from you?”  
“What is it Milord wishes to know?”  
“You have the look of the Alfari, yet there is something quite different in your face.”  
“I am half Alfari half human,” she mumbled.  
“How came you to be a half breed?”  
“I was born to a human mother, my father made frequent trips to Midgard in his youth. There, he met my mother at a frolic, or so he has told me.”  
“And his name?”  
She seemed to shrink on the chair. “Eldan.”  
She heard the water slosh a bit. “I have heard the name.”  
“He is the holder of the cup of Volundr which he and the High Court drink from when they meet.”  
“So you are Midgardian born? How then did you come to live in Alfheim?”  
In her mind, she could see herself standing before her father as he sat in his chair before the fireplace and told her the story of her real mother. She had been seven seasons old.  
“He was with her on the day I was birthed. She became ill soon after and passed on, so he took me back to Alfheim with him.”  
“A daughter of a High Court member. How came you to be a tribute to my oaf of a brother?”  
She put her mouth to her knees trying to bury her answer, wondering if he'd yet remembered his drunken attack on her, “I was pure.”  
If he recalled that night, he gave no indication, “How is it you are a servant when your father holds such a high place in Alfheim?”  
“My blood is mixed. The High Court only let me remain in Alfheim on this condition, that I serve his household. The court picked me for tribute.”  
“A daughter seems a high price to pay.”  
She shrugged, “He considered it an honor that I was thought to be suitable for a position in the palace.”   
The answer seemed to satisfy him. “What other skills do you have?”  
“I sew, and I weave, Milord or rather I used to. I was made to leave my lap loom behind. It belonged to the family.”  
“Of which you were a part.”  
She listened to him as he moved about in the water and she raised her eyes. He was at the near edge of the basin, leaning on his arms, watching her.  
“They did not think I would need such a thing here,” She fiddled with the hem of her dress, ill at ease now with his close scrutiny.   
“I wish a new sash to be made in my standards, green and gold to replace the cord for my robes. I will provide you with what you need. See that you do well.”   
She fought down the memory of the ill-fated cord, “I will Milord, thank you.”  
She heard the water slosh yet again and found he had retreated back to the bench.   
“The boy, Malek.”  
She put her head up.  
“Did he frighten you today?”  
She wanted to say to him, 'no, you did', but she held her tongue. Loki had frightened her and all at once made her giddy, made her head swim.  
“Do you believe I was too harsh with him?”  
She chewed her lip, “It is for you to decide, Milord.”  
“I asked you, thus I wished you to answer.”  
“I believe you thought that you were acting on my behalf, Milord.”  
He laughed then, “You are a servant, why would I do such a thing on your behalf?”  
She sat up straighter, irritated at his rebuff, “What other reason did you have to do what you did?”  
He stood up and climbed the stairs out of the basin while she scrambled to bring him a towel, keeping her eyes locked on the brazier near the door, half expecting him to cuff her for questioning him but he merely took the towel from her hand and started to dry himself. She walked from the bathing room to the wardrobe, pulling out a robe for him then stood waiting to be dismissed. His reply as he tossed the towel in the basket of dirty laundry, caught her by surprise.  
“You wish to know the reason behind my actions? I will tell you. It was a warning I gave to him. He will surely have returned to the servant's quarters with the tale of the cruel master. It will serve as a deterrent to any who endeavor to take advantage of you in my absence. They shall fear retribution.”  
Eidra thought about Helgi's advice to caution.“Milord, you said yourself that I am only a servant. Why does it matter what happens to one servant?” She knew she was asking the bold questions but she wished to know if Helgi had been wrong. His countenance turned hard,   
“I will brook no trouble with my household from within or without.”  
“Milord, does not such behavior make enemies?” She knew she'd reached her limit as he grabbed her by the arm.  
“You cannot imagine the depth and breadth of mine enemies, you would do well to stay close and safe and to that purpose have I done what I have done. Does this answer your question?” he relaxed his grip.  
“Yes, Milord.” She hung her head.  
“Foolish girl,” His tone had softened considerably, though he let her arm go with a shove, “Why must you have a reason for each action? To bed with you.”  
She walked to the pallet and lay down, wrapping the coverlet around her to keep out the cold air and found sleep there, ready to take her away to the land of dreams.

The creak of the bedroom door awoke her and she opened her eyes, straining in the dim glow of the braziers to see Thor walking over to the bed.   
“Brother,”  
“Mmmph.”  
“It is time to rise. We leave within the hour.”  
She watched Loki sit up, wondered if he would call her to assist him. He ran his hands through his hair and pushed it back from his face as he swung his legs over the floor.   
“Tell the servant girl to get her lazy carcass up and assist you.”  
“Leave her be, Thor.”  
She closed her eyes again, listening to them.  
“You are far too easy on the wench. She should be at your beck and call as soon as you arise in the morning.”  
“And so she is, however, it is not yet dawn and she will be awake soon enough. She goes to help in the kitchens while I am gone.”  
She heard a thud and felt the floor shake. Thor had dropped his war hammer on the floor. She had seen it in his hand, glinting in the firelight as he had walked in.  
“She is to be a scullery maid? I was of a mind that you would bring her on the trip, so enamored are you of her.”  
“You are too bold! What must I do to prove to you that she is simply a servant? I value her services. Do you not rely on your household to see to your needs?”  
Thor laughed loudly then, “I do indeed, though had I a hand maid as pretty as she, my needs would be better met.”  
“Odin's beard, Thor, must you be so loud? You gambled her away in the first place. Though I shudder to think of the treatment she would have received in your chambers.””  
She heard the wardrobe door creak and started to rise from the pallet, watching him take a tunic and breeches from the wardrobe.   
“Can it be any worse than the treatment she has received in yours?”  
She paused, waited for his answer.  
“Discipline is necessary to see that they do not forget their place.”  
“And you have a penchant for discipline. It is said that you nearly broke the hand of a field worker for daring to look at her.”  
Loki turned to glare at Thor.   
“The boy was impertinent, crude. I rode up on them and watched the whole scene. He had her cowering behind the kitchen maid's skirts and I could not tolerate it, so I warned him off, and therefore others who would take advantage of her.”  
“Others like you, brother?”  
She saw Loki start to turn away towards the interior of the room and she rose to her feet, gliding over to him, holding out her hands to receive the heavy great coat, ready to assist him in putting it on.  
“Hold you tongue, Thor.”  
“No, I see no reason.”  
Loki had been about to place the coat in her hands but was stopped by Thor's words.  
“You have taken fair advantage of her yourself. You wish to keep her for your own use..”  
Before she was aware of what was happening, Loki had dropped the coat into her outstretched arms and was now standing with two handfuls of Thor's tunic in his grip, face contorted in rage.  
“Enough of this talk, you seek to goad me into a war of words and I will not have it. You are bitter that you lost the contest and thus you seek to belittle me, as you always have.”  
Thor shoved Loki from him, “No brother, I seek to show you that there are eyes and ears in the palace that would take your treatment of her to be favoritism. You weaken yourself, make yourself vulnerable.”  
If there had been a way for her to sink into the floor, hide under the bed so as not to be privy to this heated conversation on her behalf, she would have done so but it was too late. He had turned from his brother and put out one arm. She slid the coat on, held the other side out so that he could put the other arm in and adjusted the collar for him.  
“I will be with you presently, Thor. Be gone from my chambers, we will discuss this no further.”   
Loki busied himself adjusting his sleeves as Thor scowled at him, then at her and stalked through the bedroom door.   
“Make haste, Loki.”  
He fastened the buttons at his wrists, watching Eidra as she eyed the floor, hands clasped behind her back.  
“Eidra,”  
She swallowed hard, apprehension taut in her gut.  
“Yes, Milord.”  
He paused, seeming to struggle for words.   
“Milord?”  
He shook his head, “I apologize for..”  
“No, Milord, you do not need to apologize to a servant.”  
“Be still woman!” He chided her, “You have heard a conversation you were not meant to hear and it greatly disturbs me. To that end I must apologize for my brother's lack of couth.”   
He sighed then,“Look at me, placating my hand maid...damn him, damn.”  
She backed away, “Forgive me, Milord. I did not mean to upset you.”  
“Faith you have done no such thing. It has been Thor who has vexed me. You should have stayed on your pallet,” he looked towards the door, “He shall not have me at odds again.”  
Loki scanned the room as if trying to remember something, then grinned. “You shall have your loom soon. I spoke with the weavers who work for the palace. They will provide you with what you need, you have only to tell them. Helgi will bring you to them today.”  
“Thank you, Milord. Have a safe journey.”  
She chanced a glance at him and met his eyes but this time he made no move to rebuke her, instead, he lay a hand on her shoulder, “I will return soon. See that you behave and stay with Helgi.” Only when the door closed did she let a tear escape to rest on her cheek.

She wandered to the kitchen to find Helgi and dropped onto the bench before the kitchen table leaning on her arm, crying.   
“I fear that if Thor continues to badger him about my presence that he will turn me out.”  
“Perhaps, 'twould be the best thing for you. Thor is astute but also is he dangerous. I daresay more dangerous than Lord Loki because he is crown prince and has the Allfather's ear. He will soon be made king in my estimation and then the kingdom will suffer for it.”  
“If he were to cast me out, where would I go?”  
“You could work in the kitchens with us. Do not fear, you will have a place. Now dry your eyes and let us start the day.”

The week had passed swiftly, perhaps because of the grueling pace, the unseasonable cold that had settled on the land, the miles they rode to each village to receive tribute and the drop into warm cots at the end of the day. Exhaustion had been the rule of thumb and it had kept his mind occupied until one day Thor rode up beside him and reined in to keep pace.  
“Are you still cross with me, brother?”  
“Are you still pestering me about Eidra?”  
“Yes but..”  
“Then I am still cross.” He clucked to the horse to a trot but Thor kept pace with him.  
“Hear me out. She is lower now than when you won her. Do you know of the customs among the Alfari with respect to their women? A virgin must partake in a ritual deflowering ceremony. There is a price paid to a man who does such a thing or a man is chosen from the community, a friend of the family. It allows the girl to become a woman. Your little maid was never meant to become a woman because she is half breed and now you have dishonored her, made her an outcast. You see, brother. That you elevate the lowest of the low to such a high status is near a slap in the face to the courts. If they were to hear of your treatment of her with little regard to their customs, they could take us to task.”  
Loki's face had drained of all color as he listened to Thor. “You did not tell me that she was pure. I cannot remember what happened that night and it drives me mad that I am guilty of such a thing that I cannot recall. I did nothing on purpose. I did not mean to offend. Is there a way to redeem her?”  
“Now see, brother, there you go again. There is no need to redeem her, only treat her like the servant she is. Now that her status is lessened...”  
Thor's debasement of Eidra removed what patience he had left.  
“I forbid any more talk of my servant. I will speak not of her the rest of the trip,” Loki growled.   
Thor gave a snort and spurred his horse on to join the head of the line far up. Loki gripped the reins like a lifeline. He could almost wonder that Thor had not allowed him to win the contest on purpose, so intent was he on pointing out everything that he was doing wrong in regards to Eidra. It would certainly fit with his way of thinking; set him up just to watch him fail. He reined in his horse and stepped from the road to let the contingent put distance between him and his brother. He wanted as much isolation as possible today.

The village of Rialo had turned out to welcome them. Loki gazed out over the crowds of people cheering Thor, seeing more than a few lovely ladies that the blond oaf would undoubtedly entertain tonight at the encampment. He dismounted and led his horse to the wagons where the guards were loading the tributes of wine.   
He stood there, all at once yearning for someone to talk to. After observing for a few moments, he led the horse further into the crowd to a row of vendors, stopping to finger some cloth, touching a piece of dark blue velvet, stroking the nap. It would play up the dark blue rim around the iris of her eyes. With a sneer, he took a few coins from his pouch and paid for the bolt of velvet plus another bolt of lighter blue linen, putting them in one of his saddle bags, 'To Hel, damn and to Hel with him,' he thought to himself, 'I will do as I please and this pleases me.' He mounted his horse again and rode through the crowd to find his brother.

Eidra looked at the smooth wooden shuttle in her hand, tracing the curve with her fingers. The young woman standing beside her smiled at Helgi.   
“My son carves the shuttles from oak.”  
They had asked for the loom and shuttle to be made the morning Loki had set out and now it was finally finished. Eidra was eager to start the sash because she wished to have it finished when he returned.  
Helgi returned the smile, “Such lovely work, Anna.”  
“Thank you, Hel. Will you be able to carry the loom?”  
Helgi put an arm up and flexed her muscle, “I could carry Eidra and the loom.”  
To demonstrate, she hoisted Eidra , laughing, over one shoulder.   
“Oh Helgi, you are going to hurt your back!”  
“Nonsense, child. I heft sacks of potatoes heavier than you,” but she set Eidra down and picked up the loom, “We must return to the kitchen to prepare the evening meal. Thank you Anna. Good eve.”  
By dark fall a soaking rain blanketed the land. Eidra sat at the table in the kitchen weaving the shuttle between the warp and beating down the weft, using first the dark green then the gold linen thread. Helgi sat on the opposite side of the table mending a pair of stockings.  
“Are you enjoying yourself?”  
“Very much, Milord....oh my goodness, Helgi, listen to me.”  
Helgi laughed long and deep, “It becomes a part of you, does it not?”   
“It does indeed, and yes Lord Helgi, I am having much fun,” they laughed again.   
The rain had built to a thundering roar and Eidra stopped weaving, listening, looking up as if though she could see the sky through the roof. Helgi noticed her and stopped her sewing as well.   
“Eidra.”  
“Yes?”  
“What are you thinking about?” Though she suspected she knew, she felt it only polite to give her a chance to answer.  
“I am wondering whether he is warm and dry, If they have made camp yet.”  
“Oh Eidra,” Helgi sighed, resuming her mending, “Do you think he is wondering whether you are safe and dry?”  
She didn't answer immediately, smoothing the yarn in the loom with her hand. “I know he is not. I am no fool but it does not stop me from wondering.”  
“Even after all he has done to you?”   
Eidra squeezed her eyes shut, “I try to forgive what he has done.”  
“Forgive Eidra, just never forget.”  
Eidra looked up again to the roof..

 

...and sighed. The rain thundered on the canvas of the field tent. Loki lay on the cot crossways. The troop had been feted in the village longhouse with some of the finest wines. He had only partaken of a couple steins and begged off, complaining of a headache. Thor had monopolized the entire evening with the village leaders, not that he had been particularly interested in their petty grievances and charming stories but not once had Thor acknowledged his presence. Being a prince, he thought he would figure in somewhere. He had wound up stein to stein with the local tavern owner, discussing the year's harvest which had brought his mind to Eidra.  
He had thought to call Silas to attend him, to draw water for his nightly ablutions, help him out of his field dress; the hard armor plate was nearly as heavy as that he wore into battle, but instead, he chose to be alone. The sound of laughter and the slosh of boots cut through the thunder of the torrent outside, getting louder and louder until they stopped just outside the entrance to his tent. He sat up, listening. The tent flap fluttered once, twice. With a giggle, a young, tall, beautiful, full breasted redhead with flashing dark green eyes came stumbling into the tent, Thor following suit with another woman under his arm, a shorter but equally beautiful brunette with dark eyes.  
“A gift for you brother, or would you prefer the raven haired one?” Thor cried before breaking into another fit of laughter.   
The redhead sidled over to where Loki now stood, aghast. She spread her hand over the hard breastplate, curling her fingers over the top edge and caressing the skin along his collarbone at the limit of his tunic.   
“Sire, you did not tell me he would be ready for battle.” She glanced back at Thor and winked then turned back to Loki, running her tongue along the side of his neck until she reached his earlobe and teased it into her mouth gently with her teeth. Loki closed his eyes and clenched his hands to fists as he sought to still the blood rush in his loins.   
Thor chuckled, giving an approving nod, “Come my lusty wench, let us leave them to their adventures.”   
Loki thought to throw a retort at him about inciting Sif's anger but his tongue would not obey. Thor led the brunette out of the tent and into the pouring rain, leaving Loki alone with the young woman who had now pushed him back to his cot and was kneeling in front of him.  
“Your brother wished you to have a night to remember.” She started to unlace the tie at the front of his breeches.  
“It is only to placate me for his slight..,” he breathed. Her fingers had found him, full hard. She rubbed her thumb over the tip to smear the fluid of his arousal down his length. He gripped the edge of the cot, his teeth set, hips upthrust into her touch only to repeat the action when he felt her mouth take him inside. He made to raise his hand, to put it atop her head but the sensation of her hands, her tongue, the soft hum in her throat infiltrated his mind, his body concentrated into one white hot spot of pleasure and all he could do was let her overwhelm him..  
She let him go for a moment, regarding his prone form with a smile, “This pleases Milord?”  
His eyes were open in an instant, his hand around her throat as he drove her backwards from him to the hard dirt floor.  
“Do not speak those words to me.” He growled, kneeling to one knee beside her as she stared wide eyed in horror at him, her mouth working to say something. He pulled her up from the ground to stand before him,   
“Milord?”  
He grimaced, “Do not address me so!”  
Something then brought him back to his senses and he let go of her so swiftly that she nearly fell backwards to the ground again.  
“Gods!”  
“My...Sire..” The woman pleaded, “Forgive me. I did not mean to offend you.”  
He put his hand up to silence her and walked to the stool where his saddlebag lay, “It is not of your doing.” He pulled out the pouch of coins he had therein and took out two gold coins. Then, re-lacing his breeches, took the coins and turned her hand around them.   
“Tell my oaf of a brother that you were successful in your seduction if he questions you. Only keep this to yourself.”  
“I..did you..”  
“Please go.” He drew back the flap revealing the darkness. The rain had ceased, the torches had been relit. The redhead pressed the coins to the bodice of her dress and hurried out into the night. He dropped the flap, his face a mask of shock.   
It had been too much for him. In his mind, all he could picture was Eidra addressing him, touching him as a lover, asking him if he was pleased with her. He shrugged off his long coat, undid the leather straps of his armor and drew it over his head, sat on the cot and pulled off his boots, setting them to the side for quick retrieval as needed. He lay down then, a million thoughts running through his mind.   
If he were to send her to the kitchens to work, he would still encounter her. He wouldn't even consider returning her to Thor. There was then the possibility of returning her to her family in Alfheim. That would undoubtedly be the safest, surest solution. He would have her brought back to her family as soon as they returned from the trip. It could be no simpler than that. Thor would no longer pester him about her and she would be out of his sight, out of his mind, out of his heart.

And yet when the spires of Asgard rose into view, he could only think of seeing her, angry at himself for the rush of excitement at the thought. Thor, riding beside him, prodded him in the side with the handle of his hammer. “We are home, brother, now for a feast and more good wine.”  
“Did you not have enough these past two weeks?” Loki shook his head, urging his horse to greater speed.  
“Yes but now we will be among friends and family. Come, race me to the edge of the fields.”  
Loki tapped his horse's flank and followed Thor down the road towards the palace fields at full gallop.

 

“They are coming!” Eidra cried, nearly slipping down the spiral staircase, catching herself at the bottom.   
“They are here, Lord Loki, the guards, the tributes. I can see them coming through the fields!”  
Helgi smiled at Eidra's joy. “Yes child, now come, we will all go into the courtyard to help them unload the casks and bottles and tomorrow we will prepare for Mabon.”  
Eidra could hardly contain herself as the south doors into the courtyard swung open to the cheers of Aesir, citizens, servants, merchants. When Loki and Thor finally trotted through the gates on their horses, Eidra had to hold back a gasp. They both sported short beards, and were dressed in their full armor. If their accoutrements were designed to strike fear into the hearts of an enemy, they would certainly have done so this day. Odin and Frigga had come to welcome them back and stood in the courtyard in a cleared circle where the two men dismounted. Odin hugged Thor and then Loki, giving them a hearty clap on the back.  
Eidra watched them lead the horses through the crowd, the carts rolling in after them. When Eidra turned to leave, intending to meet Loki in his chambers to attend to him, Helgi caught her arm.   
“They will speak with the High Council first, it will be a few hours before they are able to rest. Come help with the wine.”  
Eidra gave a last look at Thor and Loki as they pushed through the welcoming crowd then followed Helgi as she headed for the wagons.

 

She was sitting on her pallet, the finished sash in her hands when Loki walked into his chambers late that evening. She'd been sure to have a fire crackling merrily in the fireplace, the house servants had lit the braziers to block the cold coming in from the balcony. She leaped up, stood waiting, the sash behind her back. He was carrying something large, wrapped in paper, which he set on the bed and turned to see her behind him, smiling.  
Any thoughts of sending Eidra home to her family upon his return dissolved from his mind as if they had never been there. He gave her a calm smile in response.  
“Eidra, have you kept yourself busy?”  
“I have, Milord.”  
She held out the sash then, the green background glistening softly, the gold threads woven into a bright shimmering image of an undulating snake along the length of the sash, at the ends, green and gold tassels. He held it up to the firelight. “Beautiful work, truly. I will provide you with more thread. I would like another in different colors.”  
He draped the sash over his arm then and crooked a finger at her, “I found this for you while we were on the road. I hope you will be able to work magic with it as you have the loom.”  
She unwrapped the two bolts of cloth, her mouth dropping open as she passed a hand lightly over the fine nap of the velvet, the softness of the light blue linen.  
“For me, Milord, Why?”  
“To make a dress with, woman, whatever else would you do with two bolts of cloth?”  
“Forgive me, Milord, I meant why did you get the cloth for me?”  
He stood there, caught in her gaze, trapped by her question, “I have missed your endless questions woman but perhaps some of them should remain unasked. After all, one need not always have a reason to give someone a gift for a job well done. You have learned to serve me well and I wished to express my gratitude.”  
She broke into a wide grin, “Thank you, Milord. I shall make a dress from it. I will use the light blue linen for the top and the dark velvet for the bottom...” She hesitated.  
“Come, woman, what do you wish to say.”  
“A dress as fine as this will not do as an everyday dress. It would only be for special occasions. I do not know how many of those I will encounter here.”   
He put his hand out, wanting to touch her cheek, stopped just short, pulling it back before she could take notice.  
“Perhaps you might wear it during Winternights, if you finish it soon enough.”  
She nodded, setting the bolts down on her pallet. As he started to remove his great coat, she helped it from his shoulders, then held out her arms for his tunic. When he handed it to her, he caught her staring at him.  
“Speak, woman, what is on your mind?”  
“Forgive me, Milord. I have never seen you with a beard. It is strange.”  
Loki chuckled, “It will soon be gone, I will remove it after I bathe.”  
Eidra put the clothes down on the bed and ran into the bathing room to start the water, “I am sorry, Milord. If you had told me sooner I would have had it ready for you.”  
Loki followed her, “It is quite alright. I am simply happy to be home.”  
“I am happy that you are home as well, Milord.”  
“Are you, truly?”  
“Yes, I have no one to wait on when you are gone.”  
“Ah.”  
She heard the tone of his voice and was surprised to hear disappointment.  
“Was Milord well cared for by Silas?”  
Loki nodded, removed his boots, then his breeches and stepped into the water.   
“He is young, the subjects we speak of are therefore young in nature. Did you miss our conversations?”  
She was taken aback by the questions, the need in them and it only served to tug at her heart.  
“Of course, Milord. I missed our nights sitting in front of the fire.”  
Loki looked up at her, a sad smile on his face that quickly turned serious, “Fetch my clothes and bring them to Artra, then come and get my evening robe out.”  
“Yes, Milord,” Eidra nodded, perplexed at his change of mood, “Thank you again for the cloth.”  
“Use it well.”  
She bowed, missing his intense stare, “I shall Milord, I will return soon.”  
“See that you do, I am exceeding tired tonight.”

She had placed the bolts atop the clothes to be washed and now she fairly flew at Helgi hugging them to her.   
“Look at the cloth Loki gave me to make a dress. Is it not beautiful?”  
Helgi felt it, ”It is exceeding fine. Lord Loki gave this to you?”   
“Yes, he did, and he was pleased with my sash as well. I shall make him another.”  
“Eidra, it is time you begin to realize that this in no mere man you are endearing yourself to. Sit down and listen to me. You have seen it for yourself, you have told me, he is capable of great cruelty.”   
Eidra's smile started to fade.  
“Does this not frighten you? Does he not frighten you? I have warned you about the palace intrigue and now I beg you to distance yourself from him, my poppet. Serve him well and expect no more than the gratitude due a servant.”  
Eidra looked at the cloth on the table with growing trepidation and no small amount of irritation. Helgi was right. This complete turn around had caused her to let her guard down. A mere month previous she had been simply trying to stay alive in his presence and now she was prancing about him like a loyal hound, ignorant, foolish, ready to crawl back every time it was chastised.  
She stepped back from the cloth. “What would you have me do? Should I bring it back to him and tell him I cannot accept it, that it is not right to give servants gifts?”  
Helgi put a hand on her shoulder, “No my child, you do not want to offend him.”  
“Whatever I will do shall be wrong,” she buried her face in the velvet, enveloped in the smell of the leather saddlebag where it had been stored on its way to Asgard. Helgi gently took the bolts from her hands and set them on the table.  
“Use the cloth, make your dress but temper yourself now, no more giddy foolishness. Be the servant and let him be the master.”

By the time she returned to his quarters, Loki was already out of the bath and dressed for bed.  
“I did not stay in long, do not trouble yourself,” he said as she started to apologize.  
She nodded, retreating to her pallet, sitting back against the cold marble wall. His curious gaze followed her.  
“Eidra, are you well?”  
She nodded again, “Yes, Milord. I assumed you were ready for bed.”  
He drew down the bed covers, “I am at that, there is much to be done tomorrow. Sleep well.”  
When she finally gave in, the last thing she saw before slumber hit her was his prone form far up on the bed, firelight casting shadows on the headboard behind him.


	7. 7

That morning when she took the tray for his morning meal, he announced to her that she would be an attendant that evening at the feast of Mabon.   
“It is high time you learned. You will be pouring wine for myself and for other guests. You shall have need of a better dress than that of a chamber maid. Have Helgi provide it for you.”  
“Milord, I do not know how to be an attendant. I am just a chamber maid.”  
Loki rose from the bed. “You will learn. I have ordered it, thus you have no choice. Now go, bring the tray to the kitchen and speak with Helgi. I have a meeting with Father and the oaf so I shall expect to see you at the feast tonight, wine ewer in hand.”  
She bowed, “Yes, Milord.” and, minutes later, was standing in the kitchen while Helgi stared at her, arms folded.   
“An attendant? You will have to pour the wine, replace chalices if needed. It is not a hard job, granted, but it is tricky. You will be among a room full of drunken fools. This you must keep in mind. I cannot imagine why Lord Loki wishes you to be there. He did not ask you to attend him personally?”  
“No, he said I would be an attendant, that I would be pouring wine for himself and other guests but he never said anything about being a personal attendant. He told me to ask you to find a finer dress than this for me to wear.”  
They walked down the corridor to the laundry rooms where Artra was sorting linens into large baskets. She clapped her hands when she heard the news.   
“An attendant! You will get to see the High Council, the Great Hall, you will be allowed to eat from the feast as well when you are relieved. I have just the right dress for you.”  
Artra opened the doors to a large, long wardrobe where the staff uniforms were kept and picked out a dress, handing it to Eidra. It had a light green satin bodice with dark green ribbon lacing and a flowing dark green linen skirt that would fall just at her ankles.  
“You will shine in this. You must bathe and I will fix your hair up for you. Come.”

 

“Freyr may be overreacting. Why are the Dökkálfar breaking off relations?”   
Thor was pacing the floor. Odin stood on the bottom step, the throne high above them.   
“I only know what Freyr has told me in his correspondence. I do not wish to be involved in their petty war but we are honor bound to assist lest we become guilty of breaking our own truce. Let us hope it does not come to that.”  
“What do we have to fear?” Loki interjected, “Nothing. It would be madness for those black elves to march on the Alfari. Perhaps I should go and speak with them, to see if we could come to some term of agreement to stop this show of aggression.” Loki looked to Thor.  
“No,” Thor boomed, “I do not trust you.”  
“Ah brother, thank you. I would hope you did not. It would be so out of character for you.”  
Thor strode up to Loki and stared him in the eye. “Do not make me recount the last time you had to travel there.”  
Loki sneered “Did I not do as I was asked? That the results were not as you wished do not blame me. Perhaps next time you should not delegate such important tasks.”  
Thor dropped his hand to his sword, “Perhaps you should take the tasks more seriously, and the consequences should you fail.”  
“It would seem you should take your own advice. I am not the only one to forget the consequences of their actions. Do not make me tell Sif of your various transgressions, perhaps that petite brunette..”  
Thor's hands drove hard into Loki's chest. His boots slipped out from underneath him and he landed hard on his back, his head bouncing off the marble floor with a resounding smack. He rolled to his side holding his hands at the back of his head, “Hel's fury! You troll's child!”  
“Loki, you are too bold,” Thor stepped back from him, “Bring up our personal business here in front of Father? Do you wish me to speak of your own dalliances?”  
Loki sat up, one hand still at his head, “There are none to speak of, feel free.”  
Thor bent over with a hand extended to help Loki up, at the same time mouthing the words, 'Your servant girl'.  
Loki glared at him, refusing his hand as he struggled to his feet.  
“Very well then, you may deal with them on your own.” Loki started to walk from the throne room when Odin's voice stopped him.  
“Loki, your brother is right.”  
He rolled his eyes, “As always.”  
“No, but in this. Leave the Alfari and Dökkálfar to their own. If they have need, they will call on us. Until then, we wait.”

 

Eidra held the cloak up for Loki so that he was able to fasten it to his shoulders. He adjusted the outer vest, the short coat and turned around. “You must change your dress and hie to the Great Hall.”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
“How do I look?”  
She stopped with her hand on the door, “Milord?”  
“I wish to know how I look.” His tone was patient, exacting.  
“Like yourself, Milord.”  
He walked up to her and she cringed.  
“Either you do not wish to answer me or you are of a mind to play games. Which is it?”  
“I do not know what you wish me to say, Milord.”  
His eyes narrowed, he clasped his hands together, “The truth, Eidra.”  
The truth, she swallowed hard.  
“What does it matter what your servant thinks, Milord?”  
Loki stepped back, angry at himself.  
“It matters not. It was simply a question. Off with you before you are late.”  
She ran down the corridor to the staircase, stopping as she heard the door close far behind her and turned, watching the most beautiful man she had ever seen, striding down the corridor, his long hair triple tied down his back, dark green cloak flowing around him.

Helgi had explained to her what she was to do with the ewer, where to refill it, how to pour it, but she was still terrified as she walked into the Great Hall among the Aesir and visiting dignitaries. She recognized a few of the guests, friends of her father, Alfari High Court members. She avoided them as best she could, feeling that if they saw her in her present position, it would somehow diminish him in their eyes.  
She managed, for the first hour, to circulate well, keeping the wine flowing. The din in the hall was deafening, the laughter, clinking of chalices, steins, shouts, roars. She did not encounter Loki until the night was well along. He was talking with another Alfari, an ethereally lovely blond woman, nearly the same height as him. She tried to blend into the crowd before he noticed her but out of the corner of her eye, she saw him gesture to her and she started to make her way towards him with the ewer.

He knew he had been about to make a point to the Alfari woman, a Guild leader in Alfheim, but could now scarce remember her name as Eidra glided through the crowd. The green dress had been a perfect choice for her, setting off her fair skin, her blue eyes sparkling in the torchlight and myriad candles about the room, her hair done up off her neck in a chignon. All he could do was hold out his chalice to her for her to fill, unable to tell her that she looked beautiful. She glanced up at him quickly, no more than a flicker before she moved away.   
“Eldan's youngest. The half breed?”   
She heard the Alfari woman speak, and was suddenly seized by the urge to run.  
“She is my personal servant.” Loki replied,   
“I remember her. I remember you, Eidra, is it?”   
Eidra nodded, staring at the ewer in her hands.  
“It has been many seasons since I last saw you with your father during the Mabon in your village. How old are you now?”  
“I have seen twenty-one winters, Milady.”  
“I heard you were given as tribute to the crown prince of Asgard.” The woman's eyes passed to Loki and back to Eidra, “I was mistaken.”  
Eidra was unsure whether the barb was directed at her or Loki but it was surely missed by neither of them.  
“My brother is frivolous in nature,”  
'Oh please do not tell her I was gambled away!'  
“And he gave her to me because he had no use of her.”  
The woman looked back to Eidra,  
“...And does she do well in your household?”  
Loki paused, words all at once failing him.  
“I serve as best I can, Milady,” and suddenly realized she had spoken for him, catching his glare as she curtsied to the woman.  
“Excuse me, I must serve..”  
She spun about, eager to free herself of the situation, failing to notice Thor behind her with Sif upon his arm. The ewer made a great metallic clang against his heavy breastplate, the contents following the natural course up and out of the mouth to splash onto the armor and breeches of the Crown Prince and Lady Sif's white dress. She dropped the ewer straight down at her feet where the contents sloshed onto the floor, shock stilling her breath in her chest.   
“You clumsy whore!” Thor growled and with a great shove, propelled her backwards to land at Loki's feet. “Brother, this is your responsibility. Dismiss her at once ere I punish her here in front of our guests.”   
Aesir and Alfari, dignitaries, citizens, had all stopped to stare at the confusion happening behind them. Loki squatted down to where Eidra still sat facing Thor, tears glittering in her eyes “Wench.”   
The word, though spoken quietly, hurt so much to hear that she had to bite her lip not to cry out.  
“You shall get up, take the ewer and bring it to the kitchen. Then you shall change and return to my chambers to await my arrival. See to it that you are there.”  
If he had shouted at her, it might have been preferable to his even tone, so frightened was she by his calm in the face of this glaring indiscretion. She rose, picked up the ewer and disappeared into the crowd, knowing he was watching her go, the thought hastening her departure.

Sif shook her head, “I must now change, Loki, if you do not punish her, I will.”   
Loki drained his chalice, holding it out for a passing server to refill, “I will discipline her.”  
“He will pat her head and tell her that she did not mean to spill the wine, then he will kiss her forehead and send her to bed,” Thor muttered.   
Loki stood there, blinked once or twice, nodded to the Alfari Guild member and melted into the crowd without another word.

He would be drunk and the thought almost made her stay in the kitchen regardless of how angry he would be when he found her absent from his chambers. However, she knew eventually she would have to return as she always would and so she sat on her pallet listening to the footsteps approaching the door. As soon as he stepped across the threshold, she was on her knees at his feet.  
“Forgive me, Milord, I did not mean to spill the wine!”   
She stared at the tips of his boots, suddenly aware that her apology had made no difference as she felt him grab her by her hair. She squealed in pain as he drew her to her feet.  
“You did not mean it, however, the deed was done,” He shook her hard, “Perhaps Thor was right, perhaps I should dismiss you altogether. Make you a part of the kitchen staff. Then I would not be made to suffer your incompetence!” She could smell the wine, his eyes bloodshot, terrifying, and fear broke through her demeanor. She could not stifle the sob that rose from her as he clutched her hair, holding her head fast, his hand shaking, and that release brought another until she was crying, her hands folded to her chest in prayer.  
“Please forgive me, please. Do not send me away. Punish me, yell at me, only do not send me away from you.”  
He wanted to unhear her words, her pleading. He shoved her away from him with a shout. “Stop your weeping, woman. I cannot bear it!”  
She stood there before her pallet, her hands pressed to her mouth in a desperate attempt to still her sobs, her eyes squeezed shut.  
“Stop,” He cried again, “Silence yourself!”  
She nodded, trying to still herself but making no headway.  
He stepped up to her then, unsure of what to do, the wine a buzz in his head, clouding his judgment as it always had. He wrapped his arms around her, his hand behind her head.  
“Shh, stop your crying. Stop.”   
The warmth of her body against his was like a soothing balm, a mother's kiss and he held her tighter, “All is forgiven, shh. I am not going to send you away, only you must be more careful.”  
Her sobs had dwindled to hiccuping breaths as she lay her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat, all too soon taken away as he held her then at arms length.  
“Now, to your pallet, we must rest. It has been a long evening.”  
She bowed to him then, crawling under the coverlet on the pallet and wrapping it into herself. Only when she had settled down did he allow himself to fall to the bed.   
He had been unable to punish her, curse that great oaf of a brother. He should have sent her to the kitchens for good but he could not bring himself to do it. 'Do not send me away from you.' Not away, away from you, she had begged him, pleaded with him. The wine was robbing him of his rationale, he needed sleep. His head would be clearer in the morning, his ability to make a conscious decision restored. He closed his eyes to stop the world from spinning. 

 

If his ability to make a conscious decision was restored, it had not changed the decision itself, the only decision he had made being to ignore his brother's chiding, to do what he wished and damn to Hel anyone telling him to stop.   
As the weather turned colder, he procured a full cot for Eidra so that she would not suffer the drafts of the floor, he saw to it she had a proper winter wardrobe, complete with a heavy green cloak trimmed with black fur and a set of leather boots lined with rabbit. He had even resumed her riding lessons, ignoring Thor's as he lectured him about the futility of teaching her to ride. He took special pleasure garnering a reaction from Thor. One cold autumn day, Thor had come to the arena and found Loki showing Eidra the proper way to hold a short sword. He had later cornered Loki in the corridor outside his rooms.  
“Will you now arm her so that one night she might run you through with your own broadsword?”  
Loki had laughed and waved him away until Thor had threatened to tell Odin and he had promised to cease and desist, instead taking to teaching her on the balcony in the privacy of his own rooms. In short order, she was able to perform the most basic moves though with no great speed.  
“At the very least, you will be able to defend yourself should you find the situation arises,” He had told her one night as they sat on the balcony railing, cooling off in the refreshing breeze gliding over the city.   
During the day he was preoccupied with his role in palace life, but his evenings had become dedicated to Eidra. Where once he had been content to sit in quiet contemplation with her, they would now talk about their day. He often told her the latest gossip and she would sometimes fill in the gaps from what she had heard, occasionally they would exchange stories about Alfheim and Asgard.   
She had as of late been endeavoring to teach him Gaelic, a language the Alfari preferred to keep to themselves as a way of speaking amongst outsiders in relative safety. She would try not to laugh as they sat on the floor facing each other, she pointing to objects around the room and he trying to remember the correct word for them. When she could no longer hold back her laughter at his pronunciation, he had reached out, putting his hand over her mouth time and again until they had both laughed themselves breathless.   
She had set before the fireplace one cold night with a small set of dice she'd had made for her by one of the carvers. Loki had watched her curiously until she bade him come join her. At first he refused and she shrugged, saying that it was impossible to play many games by oneself. But he would only watch.  
Finally, one evening, after she had asked him yet again to play, he slid from his chair to sit across from her in the firelight.  
“The first player to reach one hundred is the winner, Milord, it is very easy.” Eidra handed him one die. “We need a piece of parchment and quill to keep score with.”  
Loki leaned over to his chair, withdrawing a small wooden box from beneath. He opened it, produced a small quill, inkwell and a sheaf of parchment, pushing them over to her.  
“Will this do?”  
She nodded, “The object, Milord, is to roll the die and keep adding up your points. You may stop at any time and let the other player go for if you roll a one, you lose your points. It is a game of chance.”  
He nodded, “I ken, who will start?”  
“You, Milord.”  
When his first roll was a one, she slapped her hand to her mouth, hiding the smile that became wider as he eyed her in mock seriousness.  
“It is the way the die rolls, Milord.”  
She rolled once, twice, three times stopping at fourteen, then handed the die to him, “I shall stay, Milord. It is your turn.”  
She wrote her score on the parchment and watched him roll five times, reaching twenty and she shook her head when he picked up the die yet again.  
“Be careful, Milord, the odds are against you now.”  
He looked up at her then, “Eidra, while we are in the privacy of my chambers, you may call me by my given name.”  
She returned his gaze, “I do not think I could, Milord.”  
He waved his hand at her, “You know it, why can you not say it?”  
“I am afraid to,” She took the die that he held out to her and wrote his score down, “Good choice, Milord.”  
She tossed the die but it never reached the floor, caught in midair, landing in his palm. “I shall play no more until you speak my name.”  
She pursed her lips together, defiant, as he tossed the die in the air, “Come now, you are holding up the game with your reticence.”  
She sighed, then, “Give me back the die, Loki.”  
His name was barely a whisper and he tilted his head, “Give me back the die? To whom are you speaking?” He made to look around the room as she put a hand to her forehead,  
“I shall simply use the other one.”   
She picked up the spare die beside her, holding it above her head as Loki made to dive for it and missed. He crawled over to her while she tried to hide it from him, changing the die from hand to hand, laughing, finally turning over onto her stomach while he tried to pull her arms from beneath her.  
“I could cast a spell over you that would make you obey my every word,” He purred in her ear as he knelt over her.   
“But Milord,” she gasped, “I already do.”  
He managed to pull one arm free but her hand was empty. “You little minx,”  
He had nearly pulled her other arm free when she cried, “I surrender.”  
She turned over as he sat back.  
“Milord,”   
Loki crossed his arms and looked away.  
She sighed, “Loki,”  
“What?”  
“It is my turn.”  
He dropped the die into her hand with a smile.  
“I am afraid that I will make a mistake and say your name at the wrong time,” She rolled the die.   
“You will be careful, I know you shall.” He watched her roll again.  
“I am happy you think so.” She scrawled her score on the parchment, watched him toss the die, lost in the game, his face open, relaxed, and she smiled as he gave the die to her.   
“Your smile gives me great pleasure,” he said all at once.  
“As does yours, Loki.”  
She picked up the die and handed it to him but his hand curled around hers and held it. When she glanced up, startled, their eyes locked and she could feel her heart start to thunder in her ears. He was leaning towards her now and she had all of three seconds to decide whether to bolt from him before his lips met hers in a soft brush.   
She couldn't think, couldn't move. His thumb caressed the line of her jaw, coming to rest below her earlobe, a whispered, relax, against her lips, the taste of mulled wine from the chalice beside him, the warmth of the fire, the sound of their breathing, stronger with each passing second. All sensation seemed to stand out in sharp relief, his scent, the slip of his tongue against hers in a slow, undulating dance. She felt his fingers a slight press at her chin and finally she began to follow his lead, her hand hovering above his shoulder, afraid to touch him lest the spell be broken and thus end her first kiss too soon.  
When they parted, staring into each others eyes, she was suddenly afraid to speak, afraid to move. She swallowed convulsively.  
“I am sorry, I have never...”   
His fingers against her lips stilled her words.  
“Do not apologize.”  
He handed the other die to her then, kissed her forehead and rose from the floor, she following him.  
“We will keep this between us. Do you ken?”  
He put his hand to her cheek as she gave a vigorous nod, “Thank you, Eidra.”  
If he were to beat her for any gesture, she would be content with this; she wrapped her arms about him in a strong embrace which he allowed himself to savor, then he gently pushed her from him.  
“The hour grows late, we must retire. Draw the drapes.”  
She walked to the balcony and pulled the heavy green drapes across the room to shut out the cold air from the balcony, noticing that it had begun to flurry.  
“Winternight is coming.” She heard him say.   
As she settled upon her cot, she noticed that he'd placed his pillow at the closer end of the bed and was stretched out on his stomach, head on his arms, looking across the room at her.  
“Soon, Milord.”

 

He lay on his back, silent, listening to her even breathing, the crackle of the fire, a hand pressed to the hardness between his thighs. She had become essential to him and he hated it even as he craved it. It was easy to order, to discipline a servant but when they ceased to be such was another matter. Now he had kissed her. He groaned at the thought.   
The kiss had sent his senses reeling like no other had before, sweet, soft, exquisite and for a moment he wondered if she had in fact enchanted him. Gods, he could still taste her upon his tongue and it was all he could do to keep himself still, not to fall upon her right then and there. He stood up from the bed.  
“Milord, are you well?” He turned to see her up on one elbow, peering at him.  
“I am. Go back to sleep.”   
He started towards the door. Perhaps a walk would clear his head.  
“Do you wish me to attend you?”   
“No I simply cannot sleep, I will return. Rest, Eidra.”  
She dropped back down onto her pillow with a muffled ,“Yes, Milord.”  
He stood, looking at her for a moment, eventually opening the door and stepping out into the cold corridor, to be alone with his thoughts.


	8. 8

She was startled from sleep by the sound of the bedchamber door being swung wide. She opened her eyes and raised her head to see Loki striding past her cot to draw the heavy drapes aside. The sun was not yet over the horizon but it was growing lighter in the sky. She sat up and stood from the cot, trying to steady herself.   
“Milord?” She followed him to the balcony where he now stood, staring out at the city blanketed in a soft coat of snow.  
“Milord?”  
When he turned to her, she could see the grey hollows beneath his eyes, he looked exhausted, moreover he seemed agitated.  
“What is wrong?”  
His frown frightened her.   
“The dark elves are marching on Alfheim. We will be heading out by midday. Take my battle armor from the wardrobe. See to it that Silas is ready to leave with his pallet and winter garments. Of all times to march, they choose now.”  
Eidra threw the wardrobe doors open, lifting the heavy armor from its hooks and holding it out to Loki who had already pulled a tunic and breeches from the shelves.  
“I must pack my cot and my clothes as well.”   
“Eidra, what mutter you?” Loki lay his clothes upon his bed, “You stay here in the palace. Silas will go.”  
“But, Milord, who will take care of you, mend for you, set out clothes, bring food, fetch wood?”  
“Silas will, he is old enough. Now go, woman, wake him.”  
“Let me help you, Milord.”  
She began to lift the heavy breastplate but he waved her off, his distress apparent in the set of his jaw, the way he gazed about the room and then and there made up her mind.  
She bowed to him, heading to the kitchen to speak with Helgi and to find Silas.

 

Loki scanned the crowd assembled in the main courtyard to watch the troops depart, his horse stamping at the ground, sensing his own impatience. He spied Helgi in the fray and made his way over to her, dropping the mouth guard on his helmet and leaning over the side of his horse.  
“Where is Eidra?”  
“I do not know, Milord. I last saw her heading towards your rooms,” she glanced around her at the throng of people, “She was frantic that you were going, she said that she could not watch you leave.”  
Loki let out a growl of frustration, “Tell her I am looking for her,” drew his mouth guard up and pranced away, still scanning the crowd.

 

He turned in the saddle to look again at the city receding in the distance, wondering if she was watching them leave from the balcony of their chamber. He faced forward again, clucked his tongue to spur his horse forward, matching pace now with Odin and Thor who were riding, heads together, talking.

 

Eidra drew the hood of the wool shirt over her head, hiding her face and burrowed a bit further into the interior of the sledge containing his household, the field tent, cots, scant wardrobe for official meetings, braziers, writing desk, papers, stools, rugs. She butted her back against the load and stuffed her hands inside her sleeves for warmth. She would have brought her heavy cloak had she not thought it would be noticed. She prayed that Loki would not discover her until they encamped for the evening and it would be too far to send her back to the palace.   
She had wanted to convince him that she could be of help, could talk with the villagers for him in their native tongue, even navigate for them if needed as she knew, from traveling with her father, the lay of the kingdom, but she was sure he would not have listened. She had promised Silas that she would empty chamber pots for a month if he would let her go in his stead. He had not needed much prodding to stay. After pulling her hair back and tying it up, she had blended in easily with the confusion that was the start of a march.  
But gods, it was cold. She drew herself in further and leaned her head back to the rug where the swaying of the sledge eventually closed her eyes in sleep.

Loki had listened to Thor and Father talk of stopping for the evening, expecting to arrive in Alfheim by midday next where they would make base camp just outside Freyr's castle around the battlements. Finally, growing restless, he rode down the line, watching the troops passing, his breath steaming in the cold air. He trotted through the fresh snowfall in the field beside the road until he came to his personal caravan, nodding curtly to the drover seated on the front and waited for the sledge to pass so that he could keep pace and speak with Silas, perhaps he had seen Eidra before they left.  
He fell in step behind the sledge where he could see the boy asleep on the rolled rugs. He rode closer and reached out with his riding crop to move the hood from his face. When he saw her profile, relaxed in slumber, he drew up short, nearly dropping from his horse. He considered halting the caravan there and sending her back with one of the soldiers but it was late afternoon, they would be stopping soon to encamp; they were already halfway through their journey.  
He urged the horse forward, endeavoring to hold down his rage at her foolish stunt and it was with mounting anger when they called halt that he dismounted above the sledge and began to walk back to where she was now stirring from sleep.

 

She stretched and let her legs down at the back of the sledge, waiting for the pins and needles to stop as the blood flowed back into her limbs, then hopped down, drawing the hood over her face just as a hand caught her arm hard, yanking her to the side of the road stumbling backward through the snow into a small copse of trees.  
“Are you mad?!” he hissed, “I should send you home in the morning with a soldier for escort, an armed soldier to see you do not run back.”  
Eidra held out her hands, “Milord, I can help you here, I speak the native language. I can take care of you better than Silas..”  
“Who will be flogged thoroughly when I return..”  
“No, Milord, I begged him to let me go instead. I made a bargain with him.”  
“This is not one of your games we play, Eidra,” Loki shook her and she gasped, “Do you not ken we are going into battle to engage an enemy? If they infiltrate our camps, I will not be able to protect you.”  
“Nor will you be able to protect the other servants, we will all be on our own.”  
He put a hand to her shoulder, his face suddenly a mask of worry, “But they are not you! Why do you ask so much of me?”  
“And why do you think I am so weak, Milord?”  
Loki clenched his fist in the air, brought it to his forehead, “You are but a woman, you know nothing of armed combat, you would be overpowered in the blink of an eye by the demons we are to face,” He shook his head, “If Thor finds you here, he will have you flogged.”  
“Why must you answer to Thor, are you not a prince?” She stamped her foot in the snow with a muffled thud.  
“Hold your tongue!” Loki growled, “He is first born, I must answer to him..”  
“And answer to me he shall!” Thor bellowed, his hand closing around her other arm.  
“Thor, wait!” Loki cried as Thor dragged her from the trees back to the road where he threw her against the side of the sledge.   
“I should have you beaten here and now, brother what possessed you to bring her along on such a campaign as this.”  
“I did not bring her, I only just discovered her before we broke for camp!”   
He cursed himself. She had completely ruined his ability to think on his feet. He would have lied, told Thor it was his decision but he could only watch as Thor stood above her, hands into fists.   
“We should leave you on the side of the road to find your own way home but my brother would raise such a hue and cry we would scarce be able to sleep.”  
Eidra colored at the barb, “Milord has a large heart, were it known, you are the cruel one, the arrogant prince!” She shouted.   
Loki scrambled to Thor's side just before his hand swung around to strike her, Loki catching the ham fist in his own with a resounding smack that rocked but did not unseat him. Thor drew his hand back with a growl, “Brother, I will personally see to it she receive thirty lashes when we return home! You would do well to prepare her. My fury is legendary. If you will not brook my striking her, it is your chore.” Thor glared at him.  
“Strike her because she speaks truth?” Loki cried, “I will be responsible for her. I will speak with her, but I will not strike her because you say so!”  
Thor gathered a fistful of Loki's tunic, giving him a hard shake, “She calls me cruel, arrogant and you stand in her defense? You come dangerously close to treason, brother, see that you do not cross the line again,” Thor paused, then letting his shirt go, stalked off towards his waiting horse. He mounted again, and whirled towards them, “Come wench. You think yourself brave enough to follow us into battle. Let us see if you can truly do man's work.”

 

As soon as the field tent was up, she was hauling the household goods from the sledge, rolling out the rugs, opening the cots, dragging the braziers until Loki spied her, pushed her to the side and picked them up, carrying them into the tent as he shook his head. She had piled the coverlets onto the cots, her wool coat drawn off, so hot was she, when Loki entered the tent with two bowls.   
“Come sit and eat your stew.”  
“Milord, you should have told me to fetch the meal. It is not meet that you should be serving me.”  
“Oh shut up and eat, Eidra. Gods.”  
She sat on the edge of her cot spooning the hot stew into her mouth, watching him across the way as he stared fixedly at a point, lost in thought.  
“I am sorry, Milord.”  
His eyes flickered to hers, “You should not test my brother so. He already thinks I dote too much upon you,” he ate a spoonful of stew, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, “And he would be right. Think upon your words and your actions next time lest you come out the worse for wear. Joining us was pure folly.”  
“Forgive me,” she set her spoon into her bowl, now staring into its depths.  
He waved at her, “The deed is done, I wish to hear no more of it. Were you sorry, you would still be at the palace. Now hush, eat.”  
She curled her feet beneath her on the cot, watching him, listening to the wind howl outside. When he had finished, she rose and took the bowl from him. “I will take them to the camp cook.”  
He rose from his cot as well, “You do not know where to go. Stay here.”  
Taking the bowls back from her, he exited the tent, returning moments later, shaking the snow from his coat.  
“Thor stopped me and asked if I had punished you. I told him I had,” he took off the coat and lay it on the chair at the writing desk.  
“And how did you punish me, Milord?”  
He glanced at her but did not answer.  
“Milord?”  
When he drew off his boots, refusing her help with a wave of his hand, she knew. He would punish her the only way he could now. He would not speak to her, would not let her attend him. While he sat on his cot writing in a small journal, she sat on hers, sullen and cross. When he finally blew out the candles burning on the writing desk, leaving only the small brazier at the vent hole burning for light, she had long ago lay down and drifted to a fitful sleep.

The painful throb of a full bladder roused her. She rose from the cot, peered into the dim interior of the tent. She could just make the outline of Loki, turned towards the wall of the tent, deep asleep. She looked to the tent flap, billowing slightly in the wind and sighed, reached under her cot and drew out her boots, pulling them on. She lifted the heavy hood of her wool shirt over her head and ducked out into the snowy darkness. Large torches lined the rows of tents, sentries at guard interspersed among them. She hung her hood further over her face as she passed the nearest sentry with a grunt, heading out into the surrounding forest to a tree that looked big enough for her to squat beside.

The sentry watched the lone figure drift by him and into the woods, shrugged, glancing behind him in time to see the figure squat down in front of a tree at the edge of the torchlight's reach. He smiled, grabbing his manhood and giving it a squeeze through his breeches.   
“Odin's beard. A woman.” He muttered as he leaned his lance against the tall torch beside him and headed towards the little figure through the snow shrouded forest.

 

She thought nothing could feel as good as an empty bladder as she stood up and began to fasten her breeches. The arm that grabbed her about the waist and spun her around was rough and gnarled and at first she thought it might be Thor until she recognized the face of the sentry she'd just passed. She started to scream but was only able to manage a squeak before the sentry slapped his hand across her mouth, pressing her against the tree, his other hand undoing the laces of his breeches as he whispered in a gravelly voice, “I didna' know we were going to have dessert tonight but then I didna' know we had any women along on this trip.”   
She shoved her face forward towards his hand, trying frantically to bite the fingers as he fought with the laces to her own breeches which she kept pulling from his hand, trying to find a good foothold to shove off from so that she could knock him off balance. Her vision was beginning to blur, his hand was pressed up against her nose and she was starting to struggle for air.

Loki's eyes shot open and he rolled over to sit up. “Eidra?”  
When he received no answer, he stood from his cot and walked over to hers, looked at the tent flap and drew his knife from its scabbard as he stalked from the tent into the night.

She had managed to move the sentry's hand a bit as she thrashed but he had also managed to get her pants down below her hips and was trying to stuff himself between her legs.   
“Come on, wench. Soonest begun is soonest done and I am soon to be done with you.”   
One of her hands slipped free and she reached up, raking her fingernails across his cheek, dragging hard, making him lean back with a growl, “You mess up my pretty face and I will leave ya here for the wolves to find.”   
The head of his manhood pressed forward and she squeezed her legs tighter together, her body near to exhaustion. Soon she would be beyond stopping him and she began to scream behind his fingers.  
The hand that wrapped around the sentry's forehead pulled his crushing weight from her, his hand loosed from her mouth. Loki threw the sentry face forward to the forest floor, straddled him with his hand entangled in the sentry's greasy hair, and drew his knife across the front of his throat in one single graceful motion. He dropped the sentry forward to the ground, choking, drowning words of anger and shock in a torrent of blood made black by the dim light, stepping over him to Eidra whom he wrapped in his long cloak and lifted into his arms, retracing his path through the woods as the sentry's feeble gurgles ended abruptly in a convulsive shudder.  
Once inside the tent, Loki set her down in the tent near the brazier but her legs gave way and he caught her before she hit the ground.   
“Oh Milord, I thought he was going to kill me,” Her voice was thin, reedy, panicked. He unwrapped his cloak from around her and pulled up her breeches with one hand where she caught them, trying to tie them with hands that had developed a violent shake. He pushed her hands away and tied the breeches securely. Only then did she dive forward into his arms where he held her, his own body trembling with rage. He half wished he could have made the sentry to suffer a bit longer, longing to return to the body and stab it into a bloody pulp of muscle and bone until even the bastard's mother would have doubted her own eyes. But he stayed there, standing, holding Eidra until she had calmed down enough for him to back away without her whimpering, clutching at him.  
“Now do you see what I meant, Eidra. This is no place for a woman. Were it not that I heard you cry out, he might have realized his goal. I now have to explain to Father why one of his soldiers lies dead in the snow.”   
“I had to relieve myself, I did not wish to wake you for such a thing.”  
He put his hands on her shoulders. “How am I to go into battle, to concentrate on killing mine enemies when you are so vulnerable?”  
“Give me a short sword, Milord, I would at least die fighting.”  
He gave a sad laugh, “Do not wish to see Valhalla so soon. Did he hurt you?”  
Eidra shook her head, “I fought him with my hands and teeth and nails, I tried to bite him but I could not get the chance.”  
Loki drew a hand across her cheek, “Woman, you should be safe and sound in the palace at this moment but, faith, I am glad you are here,” He walked back to the tent flap and peered out once more into the night, then he turned to her, “Back to bed with you now, we ride in the morning.”

The sounds of activity and the biting cold brought her out of sleep. She sat up, noticing Loki's bed was empty. She rose and began to fold the blankets in preparation to break camp, turning when she heard the tent flap rustle. Loki was already dressed in his armor, his helmet under one arm, a bowl of porridge in the other hand which he handed to her. “Eat, but quickly. We will be on the move soon.”  
“Did you eat, Milord?” Eidra held the bowl, warming her hands upon its surface.  
He smiled at her, “I did, little mother. Now stop your words with food.”  
She started to spoon the hot porridge into her mouth, blanching as she watched him fold up the cots, move them from the rugs on the ground and she sat her bowl on the writing desk.  
“Oh, please, Milord, do not do that. Let me help,” but he only put his hand at her back and guided her over to where her bowl sat.  
“There will not be another meal until we reach Freyr's stronghold this evening, and perhaps not then if the Dökkálfar arrive before us, so finish your bowl to please me.”  
She ate as quickly as she could manage though he had packed most of the tent before she was able to help him. The tent was the last thing to drop as the soldiers packed it into the sledge and Eidra climbed aboard, feeling the horses start to pull with a hard jerk forward. Loki had mounted up and was now riding apace with the sledge, his mouth guard lowered as he spoke quietly to her.  
“Thor questioned me about the sentry last night. I explained to him what happened. He was determined to bring you back to Asgard himself.”  
“I am sure it was not out of concern.”  
“No, he believes you are bad luck, that you shall bring defeat down upon us. I say if defeat be ours then we have not fought with valor.”  
He drew his cloak higher on his shoulders, “Are you warm enough?”  
She nodded, “I have made myself a little warren like a rabbit. I will be warm. And you, Milord?”  
“I have at least three stone of armor on me, a heavy helmet and mouth guard. If I had chosen the ceremonial helmet, I would have another half stone of horn to deal with. I am riding a horse which feels like an oven between my thighs. I will be warm. If need be, you shall have my cloak.”  
She met his eyes for a minute and found unspoken words in their depths.   
“Milord? Might we talk later, about other matters?”  
He looked ahead to the valley where Freyr's castle lay, the scene from the night in their chambers washing over his skin, rippling along his spine, nearly spurring him to dismount, take her face in his hands and claim her mouth in a rough kiss.   
“There will be time enough for that back in Asgard. I must not cloud my mind with such thoughts before battle. Forgive me.”  
She shook her head, “There is nothing to forgive, Milord. I hope that the Dökkálfar will see our forces and change their minds, maybe we shall be back to Asgard in time for Winternight.”  
“May you be right, Eidra.”

 

The valley surrounding Freyr's castle was littered with tents. The snow had transformed the beautiful valley into a magical scene. The white marble of the castle walls seemed almost to blind, so bright were they in the sunlight with the snow upon the parapets.   
Eidra knelt in the sledge and looked around her as the caravan passed through the encampments, hoping to catch a glimpse of her father and her brother though she would never approach them first. To save face, and honor her family, she would keep her distance. The head of the caravan was far off, Loki and Thor riding on either side of Odin. It felt wonderful to be back in Alfheim again.  
She watched the Alfari outside their tents, testing their bows, polishing their swords, tall, stately, beautiful in form, grace, and style. She thought she had seen Danar and was stretching higher to catch a glimpse when the sledge lurched to a halt, nearly throwing her forward. She climbed down to the ground, following the soldiers who had come up to unload the field tent. While she was unloading the contents of the sledge, she listened to the soldiers talking amongst themselves.   
Though she was concerned with setting up the tent, when one soldier pointed to the eastern ridge that towered above the valley along the eastern horizon, she paused to survey the enemy encampment, wondering how she had missed it before as they had entered the valley floor. Everything about them was dark, their tents, their weapons, their bodies, their minds. She retreated into the now upright tent preferring the normalcy of work to the horror of war and started to roll the rugs across the muddied ground.

The day had started to wane when Loki finally entered the tent and flopped down on his cot.  
Eidra was at him before he had a chance to sit up, drawing off his boots. The brazier had a bright fire built in it and he sighed with the warmth as she helped him remove his helmet.  
“We spent the better part of the day drawing up plans and discussing maneuvers until I thought I must go mad. King Freyr was insistent to get all the details down. I have no head for it right now.”  
He stood, reached around his right side and undid the straps holding the heavy armor to his body, letting it down to the ground.   
“And now I must join my brother and father in the castle proper for the evening meal. I will have you attend me.”  
“No, Milord, please, I would not wish to shame my father if someone should recognize me.”  
Loki stared at her, “Eidra, your father knows that you serve us.”  
“Yes but he has his pride, he is a High Court member, and his daughter is a servant.”  
Loki glanced at the side of the tent and she knew he was seeing in his mind the army encamped above the valley, “I do not wish you to stay here alone. What if they march while we are occupied thus?”  
“I will be alright.” She smoothed his great coat out onto the chair.  
“And what of food?”  
“I will eat with the soldiers.” Eidra waved him out of the tent, “Go, they will be waiting for you, Milord.”  
“No. Remain inside. I will bring you something from the castle.”   
She had brought him a dry pair of boots from his trunk and he slipped them on.  
“I will be back as soon as I can.”  
She nodded, wishing, willing him to kiss her again, but he only touched her shoulder, lifted the flap and strode out into the twilight. Eidra shivered at the blast of frigid air and the foreboding therein.


	9. 9

It was not long before he returned. She had brought some mending to occupy her and was sitting cross legged on her cot when he threw the tent flap open and walked in with a cloth bundle in his hands. He knelt on the rug before her and set the bundle in her lap, unwrapping it. Inside lay half a loaf of bread, a small capon, and a baked apple wrapped in it's own pastry.  
“I daresay this is better than soldier's fare.” He tore off a piece of bread and held it up to her lips.  
She took the bite from his fingers gingerly, “It surely is, Milord. Were other High Court members present at the feast?”  
He looked up at her, “You mean to ask did I see your father? Yes, he was there but I only saw him from afar. Eldan, am I correct?”  
“Yes, Milord,”  
Loki rose from his knees, went to the tent flap and lifted it, staring out into the darkness at the high ridge where a line of large fires burned. “Perhaps you will see him before we leave for home.”  
“You are worried about the coming battle, Milord.” She picked at the capon, savoring the crackling roast skin.   
“In the morning before we march, I have provided for you to go to the castle and therefore you will be safe behind the battlements.” He fingered the handle of his dagger strapped at his thigh, “Why now must they wage war, of all times, I ask you.”  
“The Dökkálfar are an enigma to us, Milord.” She watched him scan the tent interior until his gaze came to rest on her and he returned to her side, sitting on the cot beside her.  
“Eidra, in battle, there is ever the chance that we will not see the dawn of the next day.”  
She nodded, pulled a piece of warm apple from the crust and held it up to him but he put his hand up and shook his head.  
“You are become precious to me. If ere these words are the last you hear, know that much.” He put a hand up to stroke her hair, leaned over, softly kissed the top of her head , “So very precious.”   
He had just settled back when Thor threw the tent flap open and strode in. His face contorted in disgust when he saw them sitting together on her cot.  
“Enchanting, brother, will you soon be the servant and she be the master?”  
Loki glared at him, “What have you come to talk of, Thor?”  
“I merely wished to bid you good night and to tell you that we assemble at dawn.”  
“This you have done, now leave me be.”  
Thor, his eyes narrowed, threw his cape back over one shoulder and bowed, “Milady,” then threw the flap hard as he exited the tent.  
Eidra closed the cloth over the remains of the food and set it on the rug as Loki stood, still staring at the tent flap.  
“Retire, rest, and be ready to move with the sunrise.”  
Impulsively, she reached out, took his hand and pressed it to her cheek, “Be safe, Milord.”  
Her eyes rose to his, bright with tears when he lifted her chin and gave her what she had craved two days hence; he met her lips with a soft quick kiss.  
“Now to bed with you, my little minx.”  
She lay down, burrowed beneath the heavy coverlet and watched him pace back and forth. Finally her eyes could not stay open and she knew no more...

 

...Until the sound of rending fabric and loud thuds nearly made her pitch her from her cot. She sat up and looked across at Loki who had adopted the same pose, both of them staring at the ground between them where two arrows stuck quivering in the ground. There were sudden shouts all around them and another arrow shot through the tent to hit the end of her cot, nearly upending it.   
She was up, already grabbing for his scabbard as he struggled into his boots. She hoisted his armor with one arm and he yanked it from her, throwing it over his head, trying to fasten the sides with trembling hands.  
“Stay here, do you ken?” He shouted at her, grabbing his helmet from the ground at the foot of his cot. He drew it over his head, dropping the mouth guard as the tent flap was thrown open and Thor rushed in.  
“Brother we are under attack!”  
“I know this, do you not see the arrow just there? I am coming.”  
Thor disappeared back out of the tent with a roar as they heard the clash of metal upon metal.  
He withdrew the dagger from its holster and handed it to her.  
“If anyone comes through that flap, you are to defend yourself come what may. I expect to find you alive at the end of this horror with the dagger buried to the hilt in the chest of your enemy. Give no quarter. Do not disappoint me!” His hand lingered a moment on her shoulder then, and he was gone.  
She backed from the tent flap to crouch at the end of her cot, dagger clasped in both hands, expecting at any moment for another stray arrow to fly through the canvas and end her life. She listened, stiff with fear, to the sounds of shouts, the clang of metal, the twing of bowstring, screams of the dying and wounded until the sounds started to fade, grow further and further distant. Occasionally, there would be a loud roar of voices raised in triumph but the battle had shifted farther away. Exhausted, her body worn from fear, she fell into a light doze. 

The sounds of voices close by, shouting, opened her eyes as she recognized Thor's voice. She took the dagger and shoved it under the mattress of her cot shuddering to think what he would do should he find her with a weapon in her hand.  
She needn't thought about it, for the tent flap was thrown wide and Thor together with none other than her brother, Danar, their hands locked together, carried Loki into the tent and laid him on his cot. Thor pulled him upward and started to undo the straps at his side as Eidra struggled to get closer. She could hear Loki, his breath a ragged panting, see the front of Thor's armor wet with blood, droplets staining the rugs leading from the tent flap to the cot, and the smell something familiar above the coppery scent of blood, something sweet.  
Thor tossed the armor to the side. She heard the sound of fabric ripping as he rent Loki's tunic down the middle and stepped away to search for a cloth to stem the flow of blood. It was then that she saw the wound, a diagonal slice from his collarbone to just under his left breast, jagged, deep, the edges of the wound covered in a dark blue fluid.  
“Call for Clotho! We need him, now!” Thor shouted from the tent flap.  
Loki seemed to be trying to speak, his hand raised towards Thor when suddenly his back arched fit to break, body rigid, his face contorted in a spasm of pain and Thor moved to stop him from pitching to the ground.   
“Brother,” He groaned through clenched teeth.  
“I am here, Loki! Where in Hel is that physican? Wench, run, tell him to make all haste if you wish to serve your master on the morrow!”  
“Thor, you must clean the wound of the poison,” Danar picked up Loki's discarded tunic and tore a piece from it. Thor bore down upon Loki, finally managing to hold him still until the blue fluid was wiped from the wound.  
“We must wash it from his skin. I will fetch water.”  
Danar looked at Eidra and she to him. When she ran from the tent, he followed her, finding her waiting just outside the entrance.  
“Danar, please go find the King, the old physician will not be able to help Loki, not with the poison from the Dökkálfar blade. Tell him Lord Loki is in great danger.” She heard shouts, saw the old physician hurrying from a large tent far down the field. She started running toward him as fast as the muddy ground would let her.

Clotho leaned over Loki whose color had faded, become ashen as he lay struggling to breathe. The physician looked at the bloody cloth in the bowl on the floor beside him which Thor had used to clean the wound.  
“We must find out what was on the sword before he can be treated. Is there no one here who knows what those black nightmares use?”  
Eidra stood back so she could see through the tent flap she'd propped open to watch for her brother. She turned to look at Loki and was nearly knocked down as Thor strode through the tent flap. “I will find out.”  
Eidra watched Thor trot down the road to where a number of guards had assembled, only then did she sidle up to Clotho.  
“It is Strychnos. I sent Danar to fetch King Freyr. He has a ready supply of the antidote.”  
Loki convulsed against Clotho's hand as he tried in vain to hold him to the cot. Eidra lay across his chest then, to no avail as she was heaved to the side by the ever growing spasms.  
She turned her attention to the tent flap at the sound of clanking armor and chains to see Thor enter with a tall charcoal-skinned young man with long grey hair, rough in the face but graceful in body, his armor blue black to match the shackles he now sported on his wrists.  
“I see death has come to claim the dark prince,” The Dökkálfari chuckled as he watched Loki thrash about the cot, his breathing labored.   
“And you will join him if you do not tell us how we may save him,” Thor growled, shaking the man hard enough to rattle his armor and his teeth simultaneously.  
The Dökkálfari's eyes scanned the tent and settled on Eidra, “Ask the Alfari woman, she knows.”  
Thor scowled at Eidra, “Is this true wench?”  
She opened her mouth to speak but the words stuck, leaden in her throat.  
“Your master will die and you lose your tongue?” Thor reached for her, catching her by the shirt. “Tell me or you shall be the next to join the march to Hel!”  
“I...I sent for the King, he has the antidote!” She cried, shoving at Thor's hand to no effect.  
“Ah but will it be too late?” The Dökkálfari mused, rocking on his heels.  
Danar threw open the tent flap as Freyr stooped to enter the tent, still in his armor, its shining silver surface now muddied with dirt and blood, his brown-gray hair wild atop his head, beard tied with a leather thong. Thor let Eidra go and approached Freyr,   
“Your Majesty, can you save my brother? He has been wounded...”   
Freyr held up his hand to Thor, pulling from a pouch at his side, a small bottle which he unstoppered. He then nodded to the Dökkálfari standing beside him, “Jagen,” and turned to Thor. “Open his mouth, he must swallow this.”  
Thor took Loki's face in his hands. His skin had grown cold, slick with sweat, his hair now plastered to his cheeks. Thor jabbed his thumbs into the hinges of Loki's jaw, forcing them apart as Loki fought him.  
“Brother, you must let me open your mouth,” Thor grunted with the effort but at last, his teeth parted and Freyr, bent above him, emptied the contents of the small vial into his mouth. Loki began to choke then.Thor lifted him upright from the cot as he threw his head back in another spasm.  
Eidra stood in the background, arms wrapped around herself, eyes wide with shock, sure she was watching him die before her very eyes.  
Thor let him back down to the cot as the convulsions continued and they stepped back.   
“Now we wait and see if I was too late,” Freyr boomed.  
“If I were willing to bet, I'd put my coin on seeing the dark prince in Hel.” Jagen piped up.  
Freyr smiled broadly, threw his arm heavily about Jagen's shoulders and shook him, “It is so good to see you again. I have been waiting to talk to you, let us go outside shall we?”  
“Wait, if this is about..”  
The Dökkálfari's response was cut short as the tent flap swung closed. Clotho and Thor looked at Loki who lay there panting, eyes closed as Clotho sighed, “I cannot sew his wound until he stops thrashing around, I will return with fresh linen.”  
Thor watched his brother intently, his face a mask of concern as Eidra sat on her cot. Suddenly she felt Danar's hand on her head. “Outside little sister.”  
She stood and followed Danar out of the tent into what had now turned to full night, the torches blazing along the muddy road through the encampment. The castle high above them shone in the light of the full moon, blue white.  
“Father did not know you would be here with the Adgardians. Do you wish me to tell him?”  
She shook her head, “It would bring him dishonor to see me like this. How fairs he?”  
Danar smiled, tugged his short blond goatee, “He is well, he fought in the battle. It has been many seasons since he saw action such as this.” He looked up at the soaring walls of the castle, “You serve the Crown Prince?”  
She bowed her head, “I serve the dark prince, Loki.”  
Danar's steel blue eyes grew wide. “You were sent as tribute to Thor. How in Hel did you come to serve in Loki's household?”  
She wondered whether to tell him the truth or devise a lie, not knowing the outcome of either path, she waited until he asked the question again.  
“Eidra, why do you serve the dark prince?”  
“Thor played a bet with his brother and lost. I was the prize.”  
Danar drew himself to his full height, “I will report this to father, he must know of it. Thor has done a great dishonor.”  
“No, brother, please.”  
He drew his fingers through his long blond hair, “Eidra you were not meant for the likes of Loki.”  
“If you tell father, he may want me to return,” Eidra took Danar's hand and held it, “Leave it be please.”  
“What does the prince hold over you that you would beg to remain with him?”  
She squeezed his hand tighter, “Danar, he treats me well. I wish to stay and serve him. I implore you, say nothing. I shall be in you debt.”  
Danar shook his head, “As you wish, little sister. Only say the word and I will come to fetch you away,” he bowed, “I will take my leave now. Peace to you.”  
She watched him walk down the road towards the Alfari encampment, unsure whether she should have told him what she did. Only when she could no longer see him did she turn and re-enter the tent.  
Clotho had returned with fresh linen. She was relieved to see Loki had stopped his thrashing about though his color had not returned. He lay still, drifting in and out of consciousness while Clotho, proceeded to sew the gash together with heavy sinew. She noted that the older scar at his shoulder had faded to a dark pink line.   
She sat on her cot and let Clotho do his work, “Where is Lord Thor?”  
Clotho let loose a laugh, “He said he was going to inform the Allfather that Loki still lived. I am left to wonder why the old goat could not be bothered to come see the boy himself.”  
Eidra wanted to go to Loki, wipe his fevered brow, stroke his cheek but she stayed vigilant, upon her cot for fear that Odin, or worse, Thor would suddenly appear. She needn't have worried, however, as the night wore on and they remained the only people in the tent. She heard the sound of heavy equipment being moved, soldiers talking, at one point the lilting sounds of Gaelic passing by. At last, Clotho stood and moved the short stool he'd set in front of Loki so that he could sew his wound.   
“We have done all we can do for him now. Watch over him, child,” Clotho laid his hand on her head, “Summon me if he worsens.”   
“I shall do so, thank you.”  
Clotho smiled warmly and ducked out of the tent as Eidra knelt on the ground beside Loki's cot, watching his chest rise and fall. She took the sleeve of her wool shirt and wiped his forehead, damn to Hel who saw her. She was nauseatingly hungry. She hadn't eaten since sunset the day before the battle but she refused to leave him and so she swallowed her hunger down until she recalled the bit of bread and remains of the capon wrapped in linen beneath her upended cot. She drew out the food, reset her cot and sat down to eat. When she'd had her fill, she set the linen on the ground, wrapped herself in her blankets and waited.

The coughing started her awake. She sat up to see Loki leaning over the edge of the bed looking as if he was going to be sick. She jumped from the cot, ran to the water bucket parked beside the tent flap and shoved it up to his cot just in time. He retched, folding in on himself, his body purging the contents of his stomach into the bucket as she sat on the cot beside him, holding his hair twisted around her hand, the other rubbing his back. He continued into dry heaves, his hands gripping the edges of the bucket tight enough to whiten his knuckles. All at once, he leaned back on the pillows, taking in great lungfuls of air, and she rose from the cot.   
“Milord, I will get some fresh water for you.”  
She could have shouted for joy when she heard him respond, “No, Eidra, call for it. Do not leave the tent.”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
She stuck her head out of the tent and pulled it back in, “Milord, there is no one to call save for the sentries. I will be back.”  
“Where is my dagger?”  
She knelt beside her cot and drew the blade from underneath the mattress, “Here, Milord.”  
He closed his eyes for a moment, looked up at her as she held it out to him, “No, slide it into your shirt sleeve. If you find yourself cornered, make quick work of them. Now go and hurry back or I shall come looking for you.”  
She felt the cold steel of the blade press along her forearm as she hid it in the sleeve of her tunic, shuddering to think what would happen if Thor found her with it on her person, then slipped out of the tent into the torchlit darkness.  
Moments later, she returned with a fresh bucket of water, trying not to slosh it as she walked over to his cot. She replaced the dagger beneath her cot then picked up a pewter dipper of water from the bucket and held it to his lips.   
“Do not drink it so quickly, it is too cold and you will only sick it up again.”   
She pulled the dipper from him and set it in the bucket.  
“Rest now, I will get you a fresh tunic and stoke the brazier. It is so cold out.”  
She dug in the trunk at the head of his cot, pulled out a tunic and turned to him.  
“Sit up.”  
She pulled the fresh garment over his arms, down over his head.  
“Thank you, Eidra,” he murmured, exhaustion threatening to close his eyes.  
Eidra gave a gentle smile as she rearranged the covers for him, returned to her cot and lay back down.  
“Good night, Milord.”  
“Mmmm,”  
Her eyes had started to drift shut when she heard him again, “Eidra?”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
“I am cold.”  
She sat up, glanced over at him. He'd pulled the coverlet to his chin, curled into himself on his side. She could see him shiver from across the tent.  
“I will move the brazier closer.”  
“Would you share your warmth with me?”  
Eidra hesitated, glanced at the tent flap, then rose and walked to the side of his cot where he lifted the coverlet.   
“Milord, what if...”  
“Please?”   
His plea, barely a whisper, broke through her trepidation. She slid in, facing him as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, her cheek pressed to his shoulder, her arms crossed before her. He pressed his lips to her hair, breathing in her scent, the comfort of her heat, the weight of her body as it settled against his.  
“We are safe now,” he murmured. She felt the hum of his voice at her hands which she had opened against his chest.  
“Yes, Milord. Will we be able to return to Asgard soon?”   
Despite the fear of retribution should she be discovered in such a position, she was becoming sleepy, her eyes drooping shut. She did indeed feel safe, content as she snuggled closer to him.  
“We shall see what tomorrow brings.”   
She settled into the crook of his arm and was soon adrift in the ether. He lay listening as her breathing slowed, pulled her head forward and tucked the covers around her, joining her in slumber moments later.


	10. 10

Voices outside the tent roused her from sleep. She had turned to her side in the night and now was facing into the tent interior, Loki's arm wrapped tightly around her waist, his forehead pressed against the nape of her neck. She made to push his arm from her but he clung tighter to her.   
“Milord, let me go,” she whispered, frantic, “There are people outside.”  
She made another push and felt his arm let loosen. She threw the blankets from her, pulling them over him as she darted away, reaching the side of her cot just as the tent flap opened and Odin trained his good eye on her.   
“My son lives still?”  
“Yes, Sire. He had a quiet night.”  
Odin nodded, strode to the side of Loki's cot, drawing his cloak tighter around him.   
“Loki.”  
Loki's eyes opened and he struggled to sit up as Eidra rushed over to help him.  
“Father.”   
“Will you be well enough to attend the negotiations this morning?”  
Loki nodded, “Yes Father.”  
“Fate has been kind to you, it would seem,” Odin's steel gaze passed over Eidra who stood beside the cot ready to attend, “We will meet in the Great Hall of the castle when the sun is halfway to its zenith.”  
Odin glanced again at her, then at Loki and, without another word, exited the tent in a swirl of red and gold, his armor clinking as he pushed through the tent flap.  
Eidra's irritation was at it's peak.  
“Lives still,”she mumbled as she walked to her cot to draw on her boots, “Could he not spare a pat upon the back or a friendly smile?”  
“Eidra,” came Loki's sharp reply, “Hold your tongue.”  
She winced, embarrassed to have been heard though still angry.  
“Forgive me, Milord, It is just that I would have expected more warmth for a son who nearly crossed over into Valhalla this eve past.”  
“Woman!” Loki was now sitting up at the side of his cot, a grimace of pain upon his face as he put his hand to the linen tied at his chest. She realized he'd bled more during the night, going through his fresh tunic and both the tunic and dressing would have to be changed before he could go anywhere. “Do not pass judgment on my father. He is king and as such is beyond reproach. He has more on his mind than a minor wound.”  
“I am sorry, Milord,” she bowed low, “I will say no more.”  
As she started to help him off with his tunic, his tone softened.  
“Eidra, he is not a man to give succor. I have known little comfort from him in all my years. This he saves for the heir. All encouragement, all energy has been spent on the blond oaf.”   
She returned with a fresh tunic and laid it on the cot beside him, then reaching around behind his back. She had started to undo the linen binding when she felt his hand on her arm.  
“You are my comfort, Eidra. Mark this and remember it.”  
She knelt on the ground before him, her hand at his chest ready to remove the dressing.   
“I am here to serve you, Milord,”   
When she started to pull the dressing away, he winced, put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed.  
“Some of it is stuck.”   
She prised the dressing away as gently as she could, dropping it to the ground beside her, managing at last to remove it all. The stitches stuck out like angry black spiders feeding along a line of red gore. She took a piece of linen dipped in the water bucket and wiped away the blood from around the wound, drawing a hiss from him.  
“Gods but that water is cold!”  
She noticed him staring at his armor on the ground beside the writing desk, the heavy leather carved in the front from the sword stroke that had felled him.  
“You were near death, Milord.”  
“I know not how I survived. Tell me.”  
She pressed the fresh dressing gingerly across the wound, and tore a longer strip to tie around his back to hold it in place.   
“King Freyr came to you with his elixir. He has a ready supply to their poison.”  
“But how did he know I had need of it?”  
“I had my brother, Danar fetch him. He helped carry you to your tent when you were wounded.”   
She could feel Loki's stare as she reached around to secure the strip at his back.  
“So it is in your debt that I am.”  
Eidra sat back on her heels, “Danar would have recognized the poison as well given time, my grandmother was a master alchemist. I watched her many times, read her tomes and I knew what you had been poisoned with the moment I saw you but Danar did the running, the debt lies in his expedition.”  
Loki put his hand beneath her chin, “And it lies in your knowledge.”  
She smiled, leaned behind him, “The ends need trimming, hold there.”   
She knelt down and drew the dagger from beneath his cot, “Do not move, I will trim it close.” She reached behind him just as Thor walked through the tent flap. He was on her at once, his hand closing on her arm, pulling her backwards.  
“You see brother,” he roared, “see what you have brought into your chamber?”  
Loki struggled to his feet, “Thor, let her go, you fool! I gave her the dagger for protection. I knew it was in her hand! She was tending to my dressing!”  
Thor stared at Eidra who opened her hand, letting the dagger drop where it stuck in the ground, barely missing Thor's boot. When his grip loosened, Eidra tore her arm away, chin jutting out in defiance as she bent down and recovered the dagger, handing it to Loki who took it and lay it on the cot beside him then picked up the tunic.  
“Milord, the linen.”  
“Leave it be for now. I will dress and go with Thor.”  
Eidra locked eyes with Thor for the briefest moment, backing away from him as his hands clench to fists at her stare.  
“Brother, I will wait outside for you. I much prefer the company of the troops to the company in here.”  
Loki looked after him, then to Eidra.  
“Be mindful, do not defy him outwardly so. Keep close to the tent and I will return when negotiations are finished.”  
Eidra nodded as he strode through the tent flap out to where Thor was waiting, arms crossed. She heard him start upbraiding Loki as soon as he had his ear. She sighed then and started to clean the tent of the dirty linen and buckets.

 

Loki had set at the long table beside Thor in the Great Hall listening to Freyr and Jagen discuss terms of agreement. Thor was in the thick of the whole affair, shouting, slamming his fists on the oaken surface but all Loki could concentrate on was the throbbing ache in his chest. At one point he closed his eyes and rested his head against the backrest of the chair until Thor put his hand hard on his shoulder in the process of making a statement and he hissed with pain.   
The Dökkálfar's prime argument was that they wished to expand their borders but their request for such a consideration had been systematically ignored. Loki looked up at Thor, calmly questioning why they must expand into Alfheim, why Asgard could give no quarter to them as well. It had been an honest question. Given the fact that his discomfort was clouding his judgment and he had been doing his level best to ignore the entire proceedings, it was a question asked out of curiosity in an effort to play the middle ground but Thor had threatened him with a look fit to kill. It was at this juncture that Loki stood from the table, bowed to the High Court and begged their indulgence in tending to his wound.  
He slipped into the crowd gathered around the table and looked about the immense room that was the Great Hall of Castle Alfheim. He circulated through the throng, watching the proceedings endeavoring to listen to what was being said, when he heard a voice beside him that was familiar.   
He turned to see Danar stooping to speak to an older distinguished looking man seated at the table. The man was dressed in the robes of the High Court, a brilliant green caftan embroidered with leaves of all shapes and sizes and colors, cinched at the waist with gold cord, a silver circlet around his long dark brown hair. Loki stopped to listen to them speak, finding they had switched to Gaelic in an effort to talk privately among the Dökkálfar and Asgardians milling about the room. He was grateful for a rudimentary grasp of the Alfari language Eidra had given him.  
“An Prionsa Dark labhair an t-athair, fhírinne,” Danar had his hand ón the man's shoulder.  
“This must be Eldan Denari,” Loki thought to himself, recognizing the words Father and Dark Prince. They were surely talking about him. He frowned at his inability to decipher more. He vowed to ask Eidra for more lessons when they arrived back in Asgard.  
It was then that Danar stood upright and scanned the crowd around him, catching sight of Loki. He colored, nodded and if Loki had been in doubt that they had been speaking of him, he had his answer in Danar's reaction.  
Danar's hand returned to his father's shoulder. The elder man turned his head, following Danar's gaze. Eldan nodded curtly to him and returned his attention to the proceedings as Loki moved closer to Danar then, touching his arm,   
“Might I have a word with you?”   
Danar looked about him, “Now?”  
Loki smiled graciously, “I will be but a moment.”  
Danar glanced at his father who was speaking now to a white haired man sitting beside him then moved away from the table, following Loki to an open space a few feet beyond the edge of the crowd.  
“First, I must thank you for your assistance this evening past. I would have surely seen Valhalla had it not been for you.”  
Danar bowed slightly, “And we would have been overrun by the Dökkálfar had it not been for your forces coming to our aid.”  
Loki returned the bow, “And now I must beg of you a favor. I desire an audience with your father when the proceedings are over.”  
Danar tilted his head, “An audience with my father? To what purpose?”  
Loki heard another shout, this time it was Freyr who'd spoken above everyone else.  
“My business with your father is of a private nature. I only ask that you tell him of my wish to speak with him.”  
Danar snorted, “I will tell him, only know this. He is unaware that my sister serves you now.”  
Loki glared at him, “You presume too much.”  
Danar shrugged, cast a glance at the crowd. Odin was now standing, addressing the Alfari Court.  
“What other business would you have with my father?”  
“That is between your father and I. Will you ask him? It is imperative that I speak with him before we leave this realm.”  
Danar nodded, “I will tell him, then the decision is his. Remain here.”  
He watched Danar weave his way through the crowd back to the table and lean over at his father's side. Presently Eldan cast Loki a glance through the throng and spoke to Danar. As Danar made his way back to Loki, Eldan kept watch.   
“My father has consented to grant you an audience when the proceedings here are finished. His manor lies not far distant, he will receive you there, now if you will forgive me, I must attend to the matter at hand.”  
Loki bowed, “You have my thanks.”  
Danar turned without another word and Loki drifted away from the table, further into the castle where guest and attendant alike roamed the halls, presently finding an arched window that looked far down into the encampment. He could just make out his field tent far to the right down the camp road near a copse of trees. He sighed, winced at the stab of pain the movement brought and put his hand to the bandage beneath his tunic, wondering if she had managed to procure her morning meal.

It was well past the evening meal when the proceedings adjourned for the night. Loki had drawn his cloak around his shoulders and now stood apart from the Aesir leaving the Great Hall, observing Thor and Odin, their heads together in animated speech, when Danar approached him.   
“My father is at the West gate with his horse, come with me.”  
A horse was waiting for him when he reached the gate leading from the castle into the Western Woods. He grimaced at the sharp pain as he pulled himself up to mount the horse, then mounting his own steed, they proceeded down the road before them to where Eldan sat on a bay which was stamping the ground, impatient to be given rein.  
“Lord Loki,” Eldan nodded, “Follow me, my home is down the road but one league. We will speak there.”  
They trotted away from the castle, riding in silence until the castle was no longer visible through the foliage, their hoofprints muffled by the new fallen snow. Finally after some distance, they turned down a wider lane, deep rutted, well worn. The lane widened further until it became a courtyard to a large cottage with candles blazing in each window, the thatched roof glittering with the snow fall.  
As they dismounted before the door, it opened and a young Alfari boy ran outside to take the reins from them. Eldan gestured for Loki to enter the house where a tall beautiful woman in a flowing yellow gown with long hair the color of raw honey stumbled to a halt before him. She'd been about to rush into his arms and he backed into Eldan who had just made the threshold. The woman at once had a hand at her belt where was sheathed a small dagger much like his own..  
“Eldan?” The woman cried, “Who is this?”  
“Suram, mind your manners.” Eldan looked embarrassmed, “This is Prince Loki of Asgard.”  
“Brother of the crown prince?” She backed away from him.  
Loki rolled his eyes to the ceiling, “At your service, Milady.”  
Danar followed them inside, closing the door behind them. Loki looked about the cottage. It was well furnished. Eldan was a wealthy man. The front door had opened into a buff colored sitting room complete with two rocking chairs and a divan set before a tall fireplace in which a fire was blazing and suddenly he wished fervently to be back in his chambers with Eidra. Beside the fireplace was a set of plank stairs leading up to a second floor. Off to their right was another doorway through which he could see a large kitchen with a long dining table dominating the center. The largest chair, he surmised, was Eldan's, seated at the head of the table with its back to the wide fireplace around which hung pots and pans of various shapes and sizes. It was into this room that Eldan directed Loki,   
Suram following behind. The servant that had been sitting beside the fireplace, a tome in one hand, the other stirring a pot over the fire, jumped from her chair, slapping the book shut.  
“You are welcome to join us for the evening meal.”   
Suram gestured to the servant, “Set the table, Tia.” The young girl moved to a tall hutch to fetch the pewter plates lined up along its base.   
Loki thought of Eidra alone in the tent and shook his head, “I cannot stay long, I must speak with your husband about an important matter.”  
Suram looked to Eldan who nodded. Suram waved the servant girl from the kitchen, following her back into the sitting room where Danar stood warming himself before the fire.  
“Lord Loki, my son says that you have business with me that you need to discuss but I fail to recall any dealings I have had with you directly save my tribute to the palace earlier this year. Is there a problem?”  
Eldan had set in his chair before the fireplace and he waved his hand for Loki to take a seat. Though he was eager to be finished and back at camp, he forced himself to sit at the long table beside him.  
“I wish to speak with you about Eidra.”  
Eldan sat forward in his chair, “What of her? Is she hurt, sick?”  
Loki templed his hands before him, “No, she is well. I have seen to it she is taken care of.”  
“You? She was to be a servant in the household of the Crown Prince.”  
“And so she was until..,” he hesitated. It would be in poor taste to insult the oaf in front of commoners but it was Thor who had acted rashly, why should he not bear the brunt of shame? “My brother challenged me to a contest with her as the prize.”  
“So he gambled and used her as a chit?”  
Loki put a hand up, “I assure you, when I entered into the contest, my sole thought was to best my brother. I did not need another servant in my household but she has become part of it now.”  
Eldan sat back in his chair, “And this was the matter you wished to talk to me about?”  
“No, soon after she joined my household, she was installed in my chambers as my hand maid and in a drunken fit one evening, I took her against her will.”  
He could see Eldan's hands grip the armrests of his chair.  
“I wish to restore her honor.”  
“She was to remain pure and you raped her.”  
Loki stared at the wood grain of the table, unable to raise his eyes to Eldan's.   
“I did,”  
“And now you wish to restore her honor because you took her without ritual, without right?”  
“Yes,”  
Eldan paused, staring fixedly at the table before him.  
“How do you expect to restore her honor then?”  
“In whatever way you see fit. If it be coin you desire, land, livestock, you have but to name it.”  
Eldan stood from the chair and began to pace, “You would put a price on something so important, so dear to a girl that it is decided from birth who will deflower her?”  
Loki stood as well, “If she was to remain pure then there was no provision such as this for her.”  
“No, there was not.”  
Loki put his hands out, “But why?”  
Eldan bowed his head, “She is of mixed race. There are different sets of rules for half breeds one being that they are to remain pure so as not to dilute the bloodline.”  
Loki drew his fingers through his hair and winced again at the tug in his chest, he was becoming tired, anxious.   
“She serves you, correct?”  
Loki nodded, “She does. What of it?”  
Eldan fixed him with a stare, “I would think that a servant in the House of Odin had no honor to restore.”  
“You insult the King's integrity?” Loki leaned forward.  
Eldan held up his hands, “Not at all. I simply ask you of what concern it is whether a mere servant is without honor? Are they not there only to serve you, see to your needs?”  
Loki massaged his temples, attempting to stave off the growing headache between them.  
“Then to restore the honor of the House Denari”  
Eldan crossed his arms before him, “Under normal circumstances, if this occurred, the penance would be paid to the man who was originally to do the deflowering but since there was never any such provision, I must think upon it. There is much to consider. Each family has an item for the rite of passage, When the girl becomes a woman in this fashion, she receives this item and in turn will give it to the man she chooses for her mate, thus it passes from generation to generation. Since she is my only daughter, by rights, even though this was never to happen, it would go to her. Give me the night to consider what would be fair and just. I will send you my answer by morning.”  
Loki fought to swallow his frustration, “I do not know when we shall break camp. I must see if there will be more negotiation on the morrow.”  
Eldan shook his head, “I have heard tell that the Aesir and their army will break camp tomorrow by midday, leaving a small contingent behind, but I cannot say for certain. You will have my answer well before then.”  
Loki bowed to Eldan, “Then I take my leave of you. The night grows old.”  
He made to start for the sitting room but Eldan stopped him, “One question, Lord Loki.”  
Loki didn't turn around, faced the doorway, “Yes?”  
“Do you seek to restore her honor, or her faith in yourself?”  
Loki closed his eyes, “Perhaps both. I will wait for your answer.”

He drew aside the tent flap and walked inside. Eidra was lying on her cot, her legs over the side as if she'd fallen asleep sitting up. When Loki touched her cheek she started awake, rubbing her eyes.   
“Milord, where have you been?”  
He brushed the line of her jaw with his thumb, “It is of no concern to you. Did you eat?”  
She nodded, standing to assist him with removing his great coat, noticing his obvious grimace of pain.   
“Should I fetch Clotho, Milord?”  
He shook his head, “No, I will be fine, return to your cot and go back to sleep.”  
“Did you eat?”   
He knew that she would be out of the tent like a shot if he told her that he hadn't so he said that he had. Satisfied, she returned to her cot, burrowing beneath the heavy coverlet.  
“You should rest, Milord.”  
Loki gave her a benevolent smile, “I will, Eidra, now go to sleep.”  
When she finally drifted off, he lay down, unable to join her in the ether, the pain fluctuating as he tried to find a comfortable position. He decided he would in fact speak with Clotho in the morning. He sat up, blew out the candle on the writing desk and lay back down to stare into the darkness.


	11. 11

The young Alfari boy poked his head through the tent flap and peered inside, on his face a look of sheer terror. Loki gestured for him to enter and he bolted through the flap bowing deep as he reached him and held out a tied parcel. Eidra watched Loki take the parcel, walk to the writing desk and lift the lid. He took out his pouch, opened it and dropped a couple coin into the boy's hand. The boy smiled bowed again and ran from the tent.  
Loki looked at the parcel in his hand.  
“I shall return shortly, I would like to read this correspondence in private.”  
Eidra nodded, “I will go outside, Milord.”  
Loki held her shoulder, “No, you stay inside. Continue to pack. I will leave.”  
He lifted the tent flap and walked around the side of the tent to the tree line behind him where he untied the parcel. A round stone disc on a leather cord slid out into his hand. It was highly polished, with a hole in the middle through which the cord passed and it looked to be made of opal. Whichever way it was held, the play of color changed with the light. It was as beautiful as the woman who would wear it. Clutching the necklace in his hand, he drew a letter which had been included, unfolded it and began to read.

 

Lord Loki,

I have considered your request in good conscience. I have also explored my shortcomings as a father to Eidra. I have had to abide by the directives of the High Court of the Alfari, thus were my hands tied as I hold a high position within the court. I have no need for material things, however, as I am lacking for little, so then, I entreat you, as the price for restoring her honor, you allow her to remain in your household, safe, such as it is, that you do not turn her out of Asgard but keep her under your care for the remainder of her days in this realm. If she be as valuable to you as you have inferred, then you will have restored her honor. This disc is her deflowering gift, you must give it to her, she knows what it is and what it is for, she always has. I remain respectfully yours,

Eldan Denari  
Holder of the Sacred Cup of Volundr..

 

Loki refolded the letter, put the disc inside a pocket of his great coat, then returned to the tent where Eidra knelt on the ground, rolling up the rugs.   
“I am nearly finished, Milord.” Eidra grunted as she pushed the roll to the side.   
Loki bent over and picked the rug up, heading outside with it to the sledge while Eidra called out in protest, “Milord, I can do that, please.”  
When he returned to lift the next rug, she pushed it down on the ground.   
“You should not be lifting things thus with your wound. It will bleed again and I must change the dressing before we break camp for the trip home. Now sit,” she pointed to the chair beside the writing desk, adding, “Please, Milord.”  
Loki sat in the chair at the end of his cot, which she was in the process of folding, packing his saddlebag, setting the parcel inside, ignoring her obvious curiosity as she watched him, instead disobeying her orders, so restless was he to be on his way back home. He picked up the chair he was sitting on and carried it outside to the sledge, returning her glare with equal intensity. She couldn't help but laugh as she followed him out with a bundle of blankets beneath her arm.   
She heard the sound of hoofbeats behind her as she was securing the cots onto the sledge. She glanced over her shoulder to see Thor who'd reined in his horse and dismounted.   
“Where is my brother?”  
“In the tent, Sire.”  
He strode past the sledge into the tent.   
“It needs attention brother,” she heard him admonish Loki as she re-entered the tent behind Thor. He had leaned over, peaking beneath the bandage under his tunic, now he turned to Eidra, “Fetch Clotho, the wound is looking angry.”  
She raced out of the tent picking her way alongside the road, now churned up into a slushy muddy mess avoiding the middle as much as was possible until she reached the physician's tent where he was busy packing up his trunks.   
“Lord Loki's wound needs tending,” she panted, “Lord Thor says it looks unwell.”  
Clotho nodded, opened one of his trunks, pulled out a vial and a fresh roll of linen. “Come child, let us tend this quickly. I am most eager to be home by my warm fire.”

Loki grimaced, holding Eidra's hand tightly as Clotho removed the bandages and examined the stitches.   
“My son, this is but a quick fix, when we arrive home, I will cut your stitches and excise the wound. The poison, though it seems neutralized, has done its work upon the wound and a field tent is no place to perform a proper cleaning.”  
“I shall need more than the usual amount of wine for such an endeavor,” Loki breathed.   
Clotho tore another strip of linen, soaked it with the contents of the bottle and pressed it to the wound.   
“Gods but it stings,” Loki cried.  
“That means it is working.” Clotho added another strip and then secured them round with another long strip tied at his back.  
“Now may we go home?” He stood back, surveying his work, looked at Eidra, “Keep him idle, I see he has pulled a stitch or two.”  
“I have been trying.”  
Thor nodded, satisfied, “The men wait outside to break down the tent. Come.”  
Thor picked up the writing desk and strode outside with it, garnering surprised looks from Loki and Eidra.   
“Can I not be eager for the return home as well?”

Eidra watched the forests of Alfheim slip away. She had stared at the castle until it disappeared below the hills as they climbed out of the valley. She hoped that Danar would return to visit with her before they left the realm, perhaps bring father with him even though she had not wanted him to find out her current situation but it was not to be. She pushed herself farther back into the sledge, it had started to snow lightly. She put her head back to the rugs and closed her eyes.  
The jolt of the sledge rattled her teeth and jolted her spine hard, nearly bouncing her off the end into the road. She sat up in time to see the sledge behind her rein skid to a halt. The drover jumped down and pushed the hood back from his round face. “It seems we broke a runner!”  
Eidra jumped from the sledge, stepping back from the crowd of men who surrounded it  
Looking up the line, she saw Loki trotting towards them. He dismounted beside her.   
“It would have to happen now. Father intends to continue all the way through until we reach Asgard. I have called a short rest. We will have to load one of the other sledges and leave this one here in the field. There will be no time to repair it. Better to retrieve it later at our convenience.”  
He reached into his cloak and handed her goodly chunk of bread and a piece of cheese wrapped in a cloth. “A meager meal but it serves its purpose. Are you keeping warm?”  
She nodded, “I would that we were warm before the fireplace.”  
He smiled, “Soon, Eidra.”  
It was some time before the household goods were fastened securely to another sledge and they were able to be on their way. She was cramped for room with the extra cargo but nonetheless managed to find a comfortable spot. Darkness was fast approaching and the drover lit the lanterns hanging at the front of the sledges. The light snow earlier in the day had ceased to fall and now the stars glittered in the ink of the canopy far above them. She lay her head back to enjoy the view, smiling as a riding crop tapped her on the forehead.  
“What do you see when you look to the stars?”  
Eidra grinned though Loki could barely make her out, “Other worlds, perhaps.”  
“You are a dreamer, Eidra.”   
He spurred his horse forward to catch up with the head of the caravan as she continued her study. 

The morning was half finished when the skyline of Asgard soared into view. Eidra knelt in the sledge and leaned forward on the writing desk, watching it loom closer. She had never thought to be happy to see the palace again but she trembled like an excited pup eager to return to its master.   
When, a short time later, the gates rolled open for them, she jumped to the road and ran on ahead. Through the crowd, she could see Helgi pushing forward to meet her but instead of the hug she expected, Helgi grabbed her by the arms and shook her hard.  
“I have been worried to death about you! When Silas told me that you had bribed him so that you could go in his stead, I was prostrate with fear. Into battle, the Gods wept!”   
Finally, Helgi pulled her into a fierce hug, “Thank Odin you are back safe. You left me with so much to do for Winternight. The hunt is in two days and the wood piles have been rising all around the edge of the city. I have baking and cooking to do, glogg to make.”  
Eidra felt herself being pulled from the crowd. She looked behind her, trying to spot Loki but he was engulfed in the throng surrounding the caravan.  
“I should help them unload the sledges.” She tried to stop Helgi from bringing her into the castle, “I need to attend Lord Loki.”  
“There will be much talk and drink now that the army is back, he shall take care of himself for the time being. You will be there when he has need of you.”  
Helgi had been more than right.

 

The Great Hall resounded with the roar of laughter and cheers as Thor stood at the head of the table, holding up a chalice.  
“...And to Loki who fought with a ferocity unmatched even by Ulris!”   
They toasted together, Loki immersed in a rare feeling of camaraderie as he raised his own chalice in response.   
Thor nodded approvingly, “You did, brother. You fought like a man possessed, if that troll's mother Jagen had not blind sided you, I daresay you would have won the battle single handedly!”  
Loki tipped his head to Thor, cautious. He refused to let his guard down completely but he allowed himself to relish the rare speech Thor was making on his behalf. He took a good-natured ribbing from Sif in an equally rare mood. Thor would surely celebrate his victory with her later that evening.   
“In two days time, we will begin the hunt and light the fires to dispel the evil spirits and the demons that visit us in this time of darkness.”  
More cheers. Loki fingered the pendant in the pouch tied at his waist. When to give it to her? It must be on a special night. Perhaps on Winternight itself? He set the chalice on the long table before him, suddenly eager to leave the proceedings, hoping Thor would allow him to leave so early without questioning his reason.   
Loki edged towards the archway doors, thinking he would indeed be able to slip away but Thor's bellow stopped his feet.   
“Loki, there is still more celebrating to do, stay with us!”  
Loki pasted a smile upon his face, turned and joined the group of warriors gathered around Thor, yet again. “Do you ever tire, Thor?”  
Thor laughed, “Never, ever my beloved brother!”  
Loki retrieved his chalice and sighed. The fireplace would have to wait.

 

Eidra was fast asleep by the time Loki retired to his chambers. He walked to her cot, his gait slightly unsteady, his head abuzz with the wine. She lay on her side, facing the wall beside the fireplace. He reached down and pushed a stray wisp of hair from her face, felt it damp. She must have taken a bath. His heart seemed about fair to burst as he stood and watched her for a minute, recalling the danger she had put herself in when she hid away to follow him into battle. Would he ever be as brave in the name of one soul as she had been?   
He sat down and pulled off his boots, untied the pouch, put it on the high shelf in his wardrobe, then flopped into bed knowing nothing more until the next morning.

 

“Milord, waken. The day is started. I have already eaten and have been conscripted to work in the kitchen with Helgi and Artra. Am I allowed?”  
Loki sat up, “If you will draw me a bath, you may leave afterward. They will be readying for the hunt today,” he put a hand to his temple, “My head aches near as much as my chest.”  
Eidra put a hand to her chest suddenly, “Gods, I forgot. The physician will be here soon to excise your wound.”  
Loki groaned, “It must be done, I feel the ache as strong as when I was first struck.”  
“And you look flushed as well,” she put her hand to his cheek, “The wound must be cleaned before infection sets in.”  
“It is last evening's wine brings color to my cheek, woman. Do not make me out to be upon my deathbed yet again.”  
Eidra stood by the bed, hands clasped together, “The good physician will not allow you a bath yet. I will get you a basin to clean up in and then I will go see what keeps him.”  
“Will you stay with me. Eidra? While the butcher tends to me?”  
Eidra smiled at his jibe, “Of course, if you wish. Milord. I will tell Helgi I will be a bit late.”  
While Loki picked at his morning meal, Eidra drew water into a large wooden basin, grabbed a cloth and left it beside the bed for him with a promise to hurry back.  
She found Helgi in the laundry room with Artra and explained to them she had to attend Lord Loki but that she would return to help as soon as possible. On the way back to the chambers, she met with Clotho, a packet wrapped in linen under his arm.  
“How does the young prince fair this morning?”  
“He is eating, I gave him a basin of water to wash in.”  
“When we get to his room, I will need more cloths, fresh water, you may tear the linen strips for me, and I have a leather strap for him to bite upon.”  
Eidra shuddered, “Will it be so painful for him?”  
“My child, when you cut yourself does it not hurt?”  
“Yes,”  
Clotho pushed the parcel further under his arm. “Then you bump it against something and it pains you anew? Yes, it will hurt. I wonder that I should not get Thor to hold him down.”  
Eidra opened the chamber door for him. Loki was standing in front of the fire, stripped to the waist.   
“Sit in the chair, Loki, and bend forward so that I may cut the old strip.”  
Loki sat forward, his elbows on his knees. He caught Eidra's eyes once and she could see the distress there. She wanted to touch his shoulder, comfort him but she dared not.  
“There now, sit back. Eidra dear, get fresh water while I remove the bandages.”  
Eidra took the basin into the bath room and emptied it, drawing fresh water. Over the sound of the water flowing into the basin, she could hear Loki yelp. As she returned with the water, she could see Clotho had pulled a stool next to the chair and was now sitting on it.  
She set the water on the floor beside the chair and stood out of Clotho's way. Loki was looking up at the ceiling, his jaw set. The exposed wound looked angrier than it had the day before.   
“The poison continues to work its evil therefore we must remove the dead tissue before it can progress further. The scar will be wider than I expected but it must be done. Give me a wet cloth, dear.”  
Clotho patted the stitches, then handed a folded leather strap to Loki.   
“Here my boy, bite on this.”  
Loki put the strap between his teeth, his hands gripping the arms of the chair as Clotho started to snip the stitches and pull them out. Loki closed his eyes, wincing at each tug. The wound began to gape open.  
“Eidra, you will assist me by sopping up the blood with clean linen so that I may see what I am doing.”  
Eidra bent down and picked up a cloth, waiting until Clotho began to work at the wound. Loki gripped the arms of the chair harder, she could see the sinews stand out in his neck as he bit down on the leather strap.   
She dabbed at the blood oozing out of the wound. Loki grunted with each exhalation as Clotho started to snip away the necrotic tissue at the edge, moving further into the dermis. She would wipe up the blood as more came to the surface.  
Loki's groans had increased in volume. A couple of times he slapped the arm of the chair in agony. The color had drained away from his face long ago, his eyes screwed shut, body trembling with the exertion.  
“Eidra, take the blade from my packet, careful now, wrap the handle in linen. Now hold it into the fire as near as you can stand it. We must cauterize some of the bleeding to stop it.”  
She chanced a glance behind her, saw Loki watching her. She was suddenly sure he was going to pitch forward from the chair. She stood with the knife and handed it to Clotho.  
“Brace him, my child.”  
She crossed her arm over his chest, just below his chin, wrapped her fingers around the back of the chair and looked into his eyes as Clotho touched the hot knife to the wound. Loki stiffened once, his eyes rolled back and his head fell forward onto her arm as his body went limp.  
“Blessed be,” Clotho said as he snipped a bit more of the dead tissue away, “Perhaps we can finish before he wakes up again.”  
She held him up in the chair, pushing his hair clear of the wound as the doctor worked.   
After a while, Clotho sat back on the stool and pulled sinew out of the packet, stringing it on a needle. Fifteen stitches later, the wound was closed back up, looking much neater than it had. He replaced the linen covering and tied it around his back.  
“Now we must wake him up,” Clotho patted his cheek a couple times, “Loki, waken.”   
A couple more pats, “Lord Loki.”   
Clotho gave his shoulder a hard shake, garnering a slight response, once more and Loki's eyes fluttered open. Clotho already had the basin up to him when he leaned forward and heaved the contents of his morning meal into the water.  
“It is normal.” Clotho put the basin on the floor, heard a creak as the door to the chamber slowly opened and Silas poked his head into the room.   
“Ah boy, come empty this basin into the chamberpot,” Clotho waved him in. Eidra saw Loki glare at the young boy as he lifted the basin and headed to the bath room.  
“Loki, come, rest for a bit.” Clotho took his arm and pulled him from the chair.  
“If you insist.” Loki stood, sat back in the chair, then stood again.  
“The hunt is tomorrow, you may have to forgo it. You should not draw a bow with that wound.”  
Loki waved him away as he lay down on the bed, “I must join the hunt. It is tradition. I shall manage.”  
“Stubborn boy, always has been,” Clotho patted Eidra's back, “You have your work cut out for you, child.”  
Clotho wrapped up his instruments in his packet and tied them securely, then returned to the side of the bed.   
“The linen must be changed every day. Eidra, see that you come to my rooms later and I will supply you with fresh strips. The wound must be kept dry and covered for two days, then you can leave it to air.”  
Silas came out of the bathing room and sidled up to Eidra. “Is there anything else you need, Milord?”  
“Yes, boy.”  
Clotho shook his head, “I have to go.”   
As the door shut behind him, Loki sat up and gestured for Silas to approach him.   
Eidra frowned at Loki but he was watching Silas inch up to the edge of the bed.  
“Silas,”   
“Yes, Milord.”  
“What have you to say?”  
“About what, Milord?”   
Loki pointed behind him to Eidra.  
“She begged me, Milord, she promised that she would help with chores if I let her go in my stead. Forgive me.”  
Loki looked up at Eidra, “Chores?”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
“And you allowed her to risk her life to be freed from your chores?”  
Silas's bottom lip started to tremble, “I did not think on it so....” And he wrapped his arms around Eidra's waist, burying his face in her side.  
Eidra put her hand atop Silas's head, “Everyone makes mistakes, Silas.”  
Loki shot Eidra a look which she returned, “Silas, I will overlook this indiscretion seeing as we have returned safely but from this moment on, you will not question my orders.”  
Silas nodded vigorously and Loki waved at him, “Now off with you.”  
He scrambled to the door and slipped through it as Loki lay back against the pillows, “I indulge you far too much, woman.”  
“He is a boy. Can you tell me you always did as you were told when you were young?”  
“Hardly.”  
Eidra picked up the tray from the morning meal. “I will leave you to rest while I work with Helgi. Have me fetched when you need me again.”  
She was at the door when he spoke, “Tomorrow is the hunt, the night of fire. It will be a special day.”  
“Yes, Milord, now that we are returned home.”


	12. 12

Loki was up and gone well before Eidra awoke for the day. She went to the kitchen where she found Helgi making bread. Eidra sat down at the long table beside her.  
“I heard them leave, the whole hunting party. Did you not get up to assist Lord Loki?”  
Eidra shook her head, “He rarely wakes me up early. In fact, he often fetches his own robes, dresses himself. He would get his meals if I were indisposed.”  
Helgi glanced at Eidra, “What purpose do you serve, then, if not to wait upon him?”  
Eidra kept her attention on Helgi's movements as she kneaded the dough for the Pulla on a cutting board, “As a companion? As an amusement?”  
“He mistreats you no longer?”  
Eidra took one of the hunks of dough Helgi had separated and started to divide it into three to roll into long ropes. She then began to braid them together into a loaf.   
“He gets angry sometimes but he does not hurt me, he merely chides me.”   
She thought of the kisses and shivered.  
Helgi was quiet while they braided the loaves of bread. When they were finished, she slid them onto a big bread paddle to stick into the brick oven at the rear of the fireplace.  
“Malek has been talking with the servants of the way Lord Loki treated him. He said it was all because of you and I told him that it was because of you that he still had a hand to work with.”  
“He was so forward with me, I was frightened. Loki was simply defending me.”  
Helgi put her hands on her hips, “Listen to you, being so familiar with him that you forget to use his title.”  
Eidra's hands flew to her mouth, “Gods, do not say anything.”  
“See that you do not forget in front of someone much more important than I,” Helgi reached into the large bowl at her side, trying to distract Eidra with a change of subject,“We have to make the glogg for the bonfire ceremony soon.”  
Helgi took another hunk of dough, divided it, handed a hunk to Eidra and they began to make more Pulla.  
Eidra began to roll the dough into a long rope,“Malek should take a care with his talk. He does not want to sound treasonous.”  
Helgi's gaze shot to Eidra, “Lord Loki should not be so quick to lash out.”  
“He did not lash out at Silas last evening. I made sure of it. He only warned Silas not to be so pliant the next time I begged him for something,” Eidra grinned.  
Helgi put another loaf on the bread paddle, “Make sure to use your influence over him wisely lest you make enemies.”  
Eidra slid her loaf onto the bread paddle beside Helgi's, “I have no influence over him.”  
“Yes you do, my child. See that you take care.” Helgi glanced up to see Artra walk out of the laundry room and she made sure Eidra did as well.  
“Your dress is ready for this evening, my pet,” Artra clapped her hands together as she sat down on the bench beside Eidra. You should try it on to make certain it fits well, go on, it hangs in the staff wardrobe.”  
Eidra leaned over and hugged her, “Thank you for finishing it! I cannot wait to wear it to the bonfire.”  
Eidra leaped up, trotted down the corridor to the laundry room and in two minutes was back in the kitchen, “Artra will you help me with the bodice laces?”  
Artra tied the bodice tight, giving her breasts just enough lift to accentuate her cleavage, the full dark blue velvet skirt reached down nearly to the floor and reflected the light with varying shades of blue. She twirled around for them, hardly able to contain her glee.  
“Oh child, you look a vision.” Helgi sighed, “Pile your hair up, pinch your cheeks for color and the boys will fall at your feet.”  
Eidra giggled, “Oh Helgi, I do not want the boys to fall at my feet.”  
Helgi wagged a finger at her, “Go take it off until tonight so you do not soil it.”  
Eidra returned in her staff dress and they continued to make the Pulla, chatting amiably until the loaves were all finished and in the oven. By that time, the first loaves were coming out. The day had reached its zenith when Silas ran down the spiral stairs and shouted, “The hunt has returned! They are in the south courtyard near the stables!” before disappearing back up the stairs.   
Eidra peeked at Helgi who shook her head, “Go on.”  
She ran up the stairs and down the corridor, past their chambers, past the arboretum and down another staircase at the far end of the corridor to a heavy door, pushing it open in time to see Loki, Thor, Odin, Ulris, Magnus and several dozen more men gathered about a number of wagons piled with carcasses. The men began tying their kill up to iron rings in the outer walls of the palace courtyard. She noted Thor had lifted a deer for Loki and knew at once his wound was troubling him.  
There were deer in various stages of preparation, some likely taken on their return home as they hadn't yet been gutted. The men were hollering, cheering, brandishing their daggers. Loki had his hand to the chest of the buck before him. He made a careful but swift slice downward to spill its innards on the ground before him, reaching into the cavity to clean it out. She clucked her tongue, the stains on his tunic and breeches would be horrendous. Still the scene, all the men involved in it, was visceral and she began to ken the blood lust that they gave themselves over to on occasion.  
Loki turned then, spotted her across the courtyard and smiled. His hands, his tunic, all were covered in blood. His bandages would surely have to be changed later. Suddenly he was striding across the courtyard. When he reached her, he opened the door she'd just come through and crooked his finger for her to follow him.   
Once inside the staircase, she heard the door shut behind her, muting the shouts of the men outside, the sputter of the torch in the wall throwing dancing shadows on the stones. He looked up the staircase once, then taking her face in his blood covered hands, he pressed her to the wall of the staircase and claimed her mouth in a kiss, ferocious, intense. Her knees threatened to buckle beneath her as he explored the soft underside of her bottom lip, the exchange of breath stirring him to deepen his exploration, sucking softly on her tongue, running his own along the pearl of her teeth. She had her hands flat to the wall but finally brought them up to cup his face in return, a moan escaping her throat as the touch only intensified his ardor. When finally they broke away, they were both panting, eyes bright with passion.  
“When I saw you, I had to kiss you, I could not stop myself.” Loki's voice came, low, husky.  
She could smell the copper of the blood on her face, nodded. “I have yearned for your kiss again, Milord,” put her hand up, looking at the blood on her fingers, “But I cannot go back out there like this, I must wash my face lest they know who touched me.”  
His response was to lean in again for one more deep surge, tugging her lip with his teeth, playful.   
“My...Lord.” She gasped, “We must stop.”  
She felt him smile. He turned with a backward glance, opened the door as she moved back into the shadows, and trotted out into the sunlight. Before the door closed, she spied Thor staring across the courtyard at him. She raced up the stairway, hoping no one would see her like this and at the same time, not caring. She could have run to the moon and back just then. He had craved her, needed her kiss as fervently as she had wanted his. She stopped at the top of the stairs What if his reaction had  
been the simple lust of a man for the touch of a woman, nothing more, the kiss merely another way of serving him, just as Thor used his maidservants while he courted Sif?  
She put her hand to her face, her lips, frustrated. She wanted to shout the words from the spires of the palace, let the world know that she loved him, but she could not, dared not tell anyone, not even Loki himself lest he laugh at her and tell her to be gone from his sight, or worse.   
She ducked into the arboretum, running to the fountain where she rubbed the blood from her face and hands as best she could, then raced through the corridor back to the kitchen, burying her doubts, her fears deep within her bosom letting the joy of the day overtake them. She wanted to finish with her chores, bathe and dress for the bonfires. 

 

The haunches of venison that had been hauled into the palace kitchens that day had gone into hunter's stew, kettles of which were boiling in the main courtyard far back from the immense pile of wood which would be the main bonfire from which to light the others around the palace. They would be a beacon for the other villages to see as a signal to light their own fires. Eidra had not seen Loki since that morning in the courtyard, he had not returned to his chambers or if he had, he had not called for her. She surmised that he was still with the rest of the men.   
The sun was getting low on the horizon when she stood in the staff bath house pulling the blue dress over her head with Artra's help.   
“We best hurry, the ceremony will be starting soon. We want to be out there to see them light the big bonfire, and get our cup of glogg to toast with.”  
Eidra slipped on her boots, grabbed her green cloak and followed Artra down the corridors. They hurried through the palace, past the Great Hall where the Aesir were milling about talking, eating from the feast table, sauntering into the central courtyard. As the last rays of the sun dipped below the horizon, they stepped out into the cold winter air.  
Eidra stood on tiptoe to see over the heads of the crowd but was too short to accomplish much. She pushed through the throng standing around the large pyre. A servant with a tray of mugs over his head, came sliding through the crowd. Artra stopped the man, reached up and grabbed two hot mugs for herself and Eidra.  
“Where is Helgi, she said she would be out here waiting for us?” Eidra scanned the people about her, “We need Silas to lift over our heads.”  
Artra sipped her glogg and wrinkled her nose, “It could stand to be a bit less sweet but there is no accounting for different tastes.”  
A great din arose then as the crowd began to part. Eidra was shoved back a bit but held her ground as best she could. Through the great arched doors that led into the palace inner courtyard came Odin and Frigga arm in arm, the crowd chanting “O-din, O-din” until they reached the base of the pyre. Next to exit the palace was Thor, in his battle armor, a large deer skin draped over his back in lieu of his cape, his face painted with dried blood in streaks upon his cheeks. The crowd chanted his name as well as he raised his war hammer over his head and shook it with a happy roar.   
Finally Loki stepped from the palace doors, similarly attired as his brother, his face also streaked with blood. The crowd chanted his name as he walked to the bottom of the pyre, following his brother, but she was sure none chanted louder than she this time.   
Odin held up his hands then and the crowd quieted, waiting for him to speak.

”Winter is upon us now. The harvest is taken in and stored and it has been a plentiful year for our kingdoms, there is meat in our storehouse and more to come from the hunting season. Now come the dark times, when winter's days are short and the nights are long,” A wink brought rumbles of laughter from the crowd, “We thank the ancestors for their protection, their guidance, their forbearance throughout the coming year. We ask their blessings upon our houses, their open arms for our warriors who make their way to Valhalla, their wisdom as we grapple with our daily lives.”

Odin held a torch high in the air now, and the crowd retreated in anticipation.   
“With this light, this bonfire, we dispel the darkness, we repel the evil spirits that roam the earth this night.  
He touched the torch to the bottom of the pyre and the flames took hold of the tinder, rushing along the wood, upwards as a thunderous cheer arose from the crowd. Eidra, a bit sad that she couldn't expect to be included in the celebration that Loki was involved in, took another sip from her mug and continued to search for Helgi. The mulled wine was warming her stomach and she wrapped her cloak tighter around her, watched the bonfire start to roar, driving the people further back from its edge. People were climbing up the stone steps to the parapets to see the other bonfires now being lit around the city. She followed suit, trotting up the set of stone steps to her right that lined the courtyard walls and was rewarded with a commanding view of the landscape dotted with firelight like precious jewels strewn about in the darkness.  
She finally found Helgi when she turned to look down into the courtyard from the wall but Helgi was speaking to other servants, she wasn't looking where Eidra was standing.   
Eidra sighed, She would have to go back down stairs soon enough. She turned back to look out over the city a bit longer.

Loki scanned the crowd. He too, had located Helgi, expecting Eidra to be with her but she was nowhere to be seen. He touched the pouch at his belt to reassure himself it was there. Thor and Sif had wandered off to be alone somewhere. Odin was speaking with Magnus. If there was a time to act, it would be now. Loki began to break through the crowd until he reached Helgi.   
“Helgi, have you seen Eidra?”  
Helgi looked about, “No Milord, what do you need?”  
Loki waved his hand, “It is nothing I need. I wish to speak to her.”  
Helgi gave him a curious glance, “I have not seen her, I was looking for her as well.”  
“If you see her, tell her that I am searching for her.”  
He stalked off towards the southern wall and started up the steps to try a higher perspective. As he reached the top of the wall and looked along its length, he caught the flash of dark blue velvet beneath a green cloak. He moved to one side, spying Eidra who was leaning on the wall staring out into the night. He grinned to himself, walked up behind her and whispered in her ear, “You look so happy, I fear I will break the spell.”  
Eidra jumped forward, spinning about, “Milord, if you wished me to jump over the wall, you nearly succeeded.”  
“I did not mean to frighten you,” He stood beside her, gazing out over the city, “I have been so busy today that I have had little time to see you.”  
“Only once, Milord,” she murmured, smiling as she heard him chuckle to himself.  
“Eidra, I wish to talk to you.” Loki had his hands before him, fidgeting.  
“Of course, Milord. I am listening.”  
He shifted, stood, leaned over again and sighed.   
“Milord, what troubles you?” Eidra turned to face him but he kept looking out over the city.  
“Eidra, when first you came here to Asgard, I did you a terrible wrong. It is all the more terrible because try as I might, I cannot remember it, though I know it happened. It has enraged me ever since.”  
“It was the wine drove you to madness, Milord.”  
He snorted, “Ah yes, you would remember.”  
“You should not trouble yourself with the plight of a simple servant.” Eidra traced patterns on the stone beside her.   
“Eidra, you are far more than a simple servant, and regardless, I should have held myself in check...”  
“I do not believe you meant to hurt me, Milord,” she stole a glance at him.  
“I do not know if I did or did not. I only know that I took you and in doing so wronged you, robbed you of that which you had a right to, your ritual deflowering ceremony, your inheritance.”  
“I was to remain pure. My father has told me since I was old enough to ken. He said I should never feel what it was like to become a woman.”  
“I know,” Loki took the pouch from his belt, “Turn around.”  
She did so, hesitant.  
“Close your eyes,”  
She felt something heavy nestle at the cleft between her breasts. She opened her eyes, glanced downward, saw the opal around her throat and nearly yanked it from her neck.   
“Milord!” She cried, “Oh, what did you do?”  
Loki had been smiling but her reaction furrowed his brow, “I spoke with your father. I told him of what had happened.”  
“He knows I have been deflowered?” She put her hands to her face.  
“Yes, I told him I wished to restore your honor.”   
“What?” Her head was swimming.  
“And I asked him what I must do to attain such a thing. He gave me the necklace with his blessing, said it was yours by right, said you would know what it was and what to do with it.”  
Her heart had been hammering in her chest but it began to slow as she picked up the disc and rubbed the smooth surface, watching it glisten even in the faint torchlight. Her father had claimed he would give the gateway to Danar when he finally married and had daughters yet now it was here around her neck.   
“And this you did for me? To restore my honor? To pay the price for my deflowering?”  
Loki nodded, “Are you happy?”  
She stared at the disc, “I am confused. I am happy and confused.”  
He took the disc from her fingers, let it lay on his palm, “You are now a woman. You are no longer unclean, sullied. This is my gift to you.”  
She curtsied then, “I will tell you about the disc tonight, Milord. That will be my gift to you.”  
He kissed his fingertips and touched them to her lips “Until tonight.”   
She watched him descend the steps to the courtyard, clasped the disc in her hand, feeling the energy running through it. Her father had given it to Loki to give to her. Loki had wanted to restore her honor. She stood at the edge of the walkway turning over these thoughts in her head as Loki walked over to Thor and Sif. So intent was she on watching them that she failed to notice the pair of eyes observing her from the other side of the parapet along the northern wall.


	13. 13

The disc twirled about on the leather thong as she spun it, the colors in the opal reflecting the firelight.  
Loki, dressed in his robes, sat on the floor before the fireplace, leaning back on his hands. Eidra sat facing him, her back to the fire.   
“Each family has a deflowering gift that is passed down through the female generations. It is always an item of power and prestige. Women are revered as the givers of life and therefore are deemed worthy of such honor. I had looked on this many times. My father would take it out and show me what to do with it. I do not know why, he knew I would never be able to pass it on to my offspring. Perhaps he felt guilty.”  
She put the disc between her thumb and forefinger.   
“And now here is my gift to you,” she turned the disc and said, “Alfheim”  
The disc started to shimmer, losing its color until it was transparent, only the distortion between her fingers indicating that it was still there. The fireplace before them began to fade, collapse upon itself, a dark spot swirling in the center, expanding wider and wider until it swallowed the space where the fireplace had been. The firelight still glowed around the edges but the hole was large enough for a person to walk through. Loki could see the fields, the road, the full moon glittering off the snow cover and most prominently, the castle of Freyr, a few lights burning in its windows.   
“If I were to walk through that hole, it would close behind me,” Eidra looked at Loki who was now sitting upright legs crossed staring open mouthed into the heart of Alfheim, “Because I was wearing the necklace. You could walk through there and return because the necklace would still be here.”  
She reached up, felt for the edges of the disc, then turned it again, “Midgard”   
The hole wavered as if a stone had been dropped into water, the ripples flowing outward until an alien landscape appeared before their eyes, of tall poles, lights on top of them that used no candles. A hard road, strange curved wagons on either side, pale squares upon which a group of four people walked. They were talking, laughing and they wore strange, frightening outfits, their faces made up to resemble demons. They looked to have come straight from Helheim. Suddenly Eidra realized this was the night her father had told her of. The night he had met her mother, All Hallow's Eve.   
She smiled as they walked up to a strange cottage and knocked on the door. Very faintly she could hear them call out, “Trick or Treat!”   
She reached up and turned the disc again, “Return.”   
The image faded, the hole collapsed in on itself, the firelight once again returning to the room, bathing it in yellow light.  
“It is a gateway to the realms. It has a name, Uruz. Father said it is as ancient as time itself.”  
Loki gazed at the disc in her fingers, then at her.  
“And now it is yours. Never tell anyone what it is, Eidra, especially our enemies. Do you ken?”  
“I do, Milord, what did you have to promise my father in return for this?”  
He paused. A piece of firewood snapped and crackled as if impatient for his answer, “He asked me never to cast you out of the House of Odin, out of Asgard. To keep you under my care for the rest of your days.”  
“And you were willing to do this?” Eidra stroked the rim of the pendant, it felt cool against her skin.  
“Will you never tire of asking questions? I was, and I am,” he yawned, “It is time to retire, It has been a very long day.”  
He stood up and stretched, offered her his hand and pulled her up.   
“I will be helping put the meat by in the smokehouse with Helgi and the palace kitchen staff tomorrow. I have to get up very early. Will it be alright, Milord?”  
He nodded, “Yes, as long as you are here for the evening meal. I may ride tomorrow for a bit. You must join me soon, you need more lessons to be able to ride proficiently.”  
“Yes Milord.”  
She lay there in her cot for a long time, listening to Loki's even breathing, staring at the Uruz, spinning it on its thong, watching the iridescent color dance on its surface until she joined him in slumber.

 

Nearly every day for two weeks, Loki would be gone with the hunt early, rarely waking her to assist him. In the evenings, he would come home, caked with dirt and sweat, soaked through to the skin from trudging through the snow with the party. She would already have a bath drawn for him and a fresh robe set out, having charged Silas to watch for the hunt to return so that she could be ready. She would bring him his evening meal, sometimes he would eat, more often he would drop into bed to sleep until morning when he would be up before dawn.  
One morning, his preparations woke her up and she rose to help, fetching a fresh tunic and breeches from the wardrobe. She stood before him as he pulled on his boots.  
“The wound heals well, Milord.”  
Loki gave a tight smile and nodded. “It still pains me, Clotho was not gentle when he removed the stitches.”  
“Milord?”  
He raised his head as he snugged up one boot, “Yes?”  
“Will you be late returning tonight?”  
He grabbed the other boot and shoved his foot inside. “If this hunt is as successful as the one the day before, we shall be going further afield to look for game. We needs must stock the storehouses to last through the winter. I will likely be late.” He paused, “Why?”  
She clasped her hands behind her back, “It has been many a night since you sat before the fire with me. I.....miss it.”  
He sat up, “It will be a long lean winter without a successful hunting season. Even with the game we kill, the end of winter is often meatless when the herds shift. A few more days, and we shall rest, then there will be a delegation coming from Alfheim which we are to entertain. I wish you to be wine steward again at the feasting. It will be in the Throne room instead of the Great Hall.”  
She felt her face flush, “Milord, I did not do well the last time I served wine.”  
He put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it, “I have faith in you. Now Thor shall be chomping at the bit lest I hurry.”  
She bit her lip. He had not kissed her, shown her any sign of affection since Winternights and she certainly could not ask for it. He smiled then, and was gone.  
She so craved his attention, she could have cried. Instead she swallowed her disappointment, made up her cot and headed for the kitchen to help Helgi and Artra.

 

That evening, having brought the remains of his evening meal back to the kitchen, she returned to his chambers to find him in his chair before the fireplace.  
She dropped down on the bear skin rug at his feet and laughed as he produced her set of dice, tossing them to her. They played for nearly an hour, he regaling her with stories of the hunt.  
“I have had to use my crossbow this season, the wound causes me such pain I cannot draw my bow.” He tossed the dice, scooped them up, tossed them again.  
“Perhaps in time, if you continue to try, the wound shall give.”  
He shrugged, handed the dice to her, “I am proficient in both. The job is done either way.”  
She kept him abreast of the current palace intrigues and he answered her with some of his own, but all too soon he put his head down upon his bent knees, “Eidra, the hunt saps my strength, I must rest.”  
She nodded as he rose from the floor, following him to turn down the sheets of his bed. He lay down and pulled the covers up to his chest, “I promise, we will have our nights to us soon enough.”  
“This night will hold me a bit longer, Milord.”  
“And I will continue your riding lessons as I have promised.”  
“I look forward to it, Milord.”  
He never heard her response.

 

The Alfari delegation had arrived while the party was still in the fields and the staff were busy seeing them to the guest quarters. Eidra did not expect her father to come with them this time, King Freyr and a number of High Court members were present and it was so close to Yule. She wanted to thank him for his acceptance, his consideration though she did not want him to lose face in the eyes of his equals. She promised herself she would find the time to write him a letter.  
She had donned her green dress that evening, arriving at Loki's chambers to help him ready for the fete but found he had long ago done so. She picked up his dirty clothes, brought them to the laundry room and headed for the palace kitchen to start serving.  
In the Throne room, tables from the Great Hall had been assembled in a U-shape before the steps leading up to the Throne of Odin, though Odin, Frigga, Loki, Thor and Sif sat at the head table with Freyr and his wife, Gerðr.  
She started along one side of the table with her ewer, dodging the food servers, pouring as she went, returning to the kitchen for more wine as needed, continuing along the tables until she reached Thor and Loki seated side by side. Thor held up his chalice, eying her carefully as she poured the wine. She eased behind Thor to Loki who gazed up at her with a gentle smile and a nod. She returned the smile and moved to the next chalice.   
She had reached the other side of the room when she heard Freyr's booming voice ring out in the hall.  
“You have regaled us with a grand feast, therefor, we shall supply you with the entertainment.” The clap of his hands brought out a troupe of ethereally lovely Alfari women, dressed in a rainbow of silk scarves, metal beads in bands at their wrists and ankles glittering in the torchlight, tinkling merrily with each step they made. As they reached the middle of the floor and began to dance, the catcalls and shouts of the men, pounding their fists on the table, were punctuated by three large leather clad men who had tall drums strapped to their waists, their tempo slow, sultry.   
One red head dressed in gold silks, with flashing green eyes, broke from the troupe and started to flit along behind the tables, another white-blond woman in dark blue silks to match her eyes, started up the opposite side of the room. Eidra glanced at the head table to where Loki sat, smiling and talking to Thor. When Thor was distracted for a moment by one of the women leaning over the table to kiss him, Loki looked to her, holding her gaze a little too long. When Thor turned his head to speak to Loki, she knew at once he had seen the exchange between them. She quickly looked away, continuing along the tables, missing Thor's gesture to the red head who bent down beside him as he whispered in her ear, smiling as she listened.  
When Eidra heard the crowd grow louder, she looked up. To her horror, the red head had dragged Loki out into the middle of the room and was starting to dance around him, drawing her silk scarf around him as he stood there smiling...smiling...She gripped the handle of the ewer tightly, wanting to knock it repeatedly against the woman's skull.   
When the dancer put her hands against Loki's chest and drew them down slowly to his thighs, Eidra thought better of knocking her in the head, preferring then to take said head by the red hair and bash it on the marble floor. The tempo of the drums increased as her movements took a frenzied, erotic trip around Loki's body.   
Eidra felt unable to turn away, watching his face as he watched the woman, lips parted, hypnotized. She could see his breathing change from across the room, he did not even flinch when the slut pulled his sword from its scabbard and started to dance with it, drawing the flat between his legs and laughing as his head tipped backwards to the ceiling while the men at the tables got louder. The drums had reached a fever pitch then, when in a final stroke, the red head threw the blade of the sword behind his head, drawing him to her and catching him in an intense kiss, his hands coming from his sides to her shoulders, lingering momentarily before gently pushing her away.  
Thor was standing up by then, his chalice raised as he whooped. The red head bowed to Loki who, flushed with color, bowed in return. He made his way back to his chair beside Thor, the latter clapping him heartily on the back.

 

Eidra sat at the staff kitchen table, alone, trembling with rage. He had been smiling...had even touched the little whore. She could not have been full Alfari, they were better than that, they would not have danced like such harlots. She banged her fist on the table, making the ewer rattle on the wood. She had been right. She was simply his servant as Helgi had warned her all along. She stood from the table, her slippers slapping the flagstone steps as she mounted them on her way to his chambers to wait for him to retire.

Loki had searched for Eidra, leaving the table to wander into the palace kitchens, scaring the wait staff senseless when he strode through their midst.  
He returned to the Throne room, perplexed, concerned., wondering if she had taken ill of a sudden. He informed Thor that he was going to retire for the evening but Thor insisted he stay longer until eventually the midnight hour was close at hand. Loki kissed Frigga on the cheek with a whispered, “Good evening, Mother,” and slipped away from the crowd now socializing at the center of the room between tables.

Eidra was in her cot, face to the wall when she heard the door slide open and close gently with a click. Eidra turned over and rose from the cot to assist him with his dress clothes. As she stood there, quiet, her arms outstretched for his garments, he glanced at her face, “Where were you?”  
“When, Milord?” Her voice sounded flat to her and she frowned.  
“During the fete, I could not find you after the entertainment.”  
She bit her lip, a bit harder and she was sure she would have drawn blood. “I did not know you were looking for me, Milord.”  
He had paused, his inner vestment open at his chest, “You were supposed to be serving the wine, am I correct?”  
She nodded, thrust her arms out farther so he would see she was waiting but he did not make to remove another piece of clothing. “So where were you?”  
“I was in the staff kitchen, Milord.” It was not a lie.  
He had tilted his head to look at her, “What troubles you?”  
She gave a loud sigh and put his great coat on the bed beside her, putting her hands up to draw his inner vestment off for him but he shrugged her away, “I asked you a question.”  
“Nothing, Milord.”  
He took a step back, “You lie! And to me of all people.”  
She gritted her teeth, “I do not, Milord.”  
His eyes narrowed, he scanned the room, his mind tumbling through the events of the day until, like a clap of thunder, he knew, “You are jealous.” a slow smile spread across his face.  
She shot him a look filled with anger, “What have I to be jealous of?”  
He leaned towards her, his finger pointed at her chest, “You are jealous of that dancer, the red head who kissed me!” He was positively giddy.  
She put her hands on her hips, “And this amuses you.”  
He nodded, chuckling as he crossed his arms.  
“Were you so amused when Malek kissed my hand and you nearly broke his for it?”  
His smile slipped away, “You are too bold, woman.”  
“Am I?” She backed away from him as he started to pace.  
“He was rude, uncouth. To approach a woman before being properly introduced, then to deny it before me. He deserved much more than was given him but once again I heeded your plea.”  
Eidra began to walk back and forth to keep in step. “The way you treated him, demeaned him. I would have thought it was more than just a warning to mind his manners. I do not think you would have done what you did had he approached anyone else in such a way.”  
A sneer crept to Loki's face, “And you believe that it was jealousy made me do such a thing?” He was suddenly angry at himself for baring his feelings to a servant, angry that even then she had known his heart. Angrier still that she would not concede, wanting to shake her until she confessed a desire to strangle the red headed siren with her own silks.  
He waved at her, “I grow weary of this game, fetch my robe.”  
Eidra now had her hands down at her sides, balled into fists as she turned and headed for the door.  
Loki took a couple steps forward, “Eidra, did you hear me?”  
She opened up the bedchamber door.  
“Where are you going?!”  
She glanced back at him stepped out into the corridor, and started walking at a fast clip towards the staircase. Behind her, she heard him roar, “Eidra!”  
She kept her pace, expecting him at any minute to come running up behind her. She was able to reach the top of the staircase before the door to his chambers swung open. It was then she started to run. She reached the kitchen as she heard his footsteps start down the stairs. Helgi leapt from the bench at the table, startled as she watched Eidra scramble around the opposite side towards the fireplace and plant herself squarely, her hands on the table. Loki hit the bottom step and strode to the table, slamming his hands down inches from hers.   
“How dare you defy me!” He shouted at her, his face flushed, the muscles straining at his neck.  
“You called me a liar!” She cried, “And you lie in return.”  
He leaned in closer, his eyes afire with rage, “Hold your tongue, wench.”  
The word stabbed into her like a dagger, “I refuse, you will not make me.”  
She stared into his eyes, sure he would strike her now, bracing herself, hardening her heart.  
He remained leaning over the table, however, fingernails scratching the wood, trembling. Finally he stood, straightened his tunic.  
“So be it. Stay here in the kitchen this night, sit at the table, see how unforgiving hard wood becomes. You will soon miss your warm bed, your place by the fire.”   
He glanced at Helgi, and without another word, strode back up the staircase. A minute later, the door to his chamber slammed so hard, she thought it would surely rock from its hinges.  
Helgi stood, frozen, her hands at her cheeks, “What in Odin's silver beard has happened?”  
Eidra sat down at the bench, put her head upon her arms.  
“He called me jealous,” she moaned.  
“Of who, what?” Helgi sat down beside her and put a hand on her back.  
“Of that Alfari dancer who had her hands all over him this night.”  
“What dancer?”  
Eidra shook her head, “You were not up there at the fete. The delegation from Alfheim brought dancers with them and one of the little whores kissed him.”   
“Eidra, such talk. Then what happened?”  
She put her head up and stared at the ceiling as if she could see him, “Then he came to his chambers and asked me what was wrong, I told him nothing. We started to spar. I challenged him with his treatment of Malek, I told him he was jealous too and he just waved me off. So when he told me to fetch his robe, I refused and then came down here.”  
Helgi still had one hand to her cheek, “But Eidra, he is the prince, that is your chore, to assist him, is it not?”  
Eidra nodded, she could feel her throat start to sting as the tears finally started their relentless track down her face, “Oh Helgi, I love him! I love him so much.”  
Helgi grabbed her by the shoulders, “No you do not. He is a prince, you are a servant. You are infatuated with him. It is to be expected but it is nothing more than that. Look at all he has done to you since you arrived here!”  
Eidra touched the Uruz sitting at her breasts and a fresh spate of tears threatened. “But he has done much more for me.”  
“Child, I will not ask what has gone on behind those chamber doors but, faith, I have warned you about becoming too familiar with him.”  
“So your master has banished you now has he?”   
Helgi and Eidra swiveled around on the bench to stare down the corridor where Malek was standing, leaning against the archway into the kitchen.  
“Malek, what are you doing here?” Helgi stood from the bench, hoping Malek had come late to the conversation.   
Malek bowed to Helgi, “I was fetching Silas for my mother, she does not like him to walk the palace corridors alone at night and he is finishing up in the palace kitchen, so I wait for him.”  
Helgi waved her hands at him, “Well then wait in the kitchens unless you wish for Lord Loki to find you here.”  
Malek laughed, walking to the bench, sitting down and sliding towards Eidra who put her hands out to stop him from coming closer to her. “He is in his rooms, I heard him leave the kitchen, without his hand maid, I must take pains to notice.”  
“Malek, it is high time you left and I shall take pains to show you the way out.” Helgi picked up the bread paddle, brandishing it like a sword.  
Malek stood from the bench with his hands in the air, laughing harder now, “I think you are correct, if you will excuse me. Eidra, I do hope you find another master soon.”  
The crack of the bread paddle against the table put wings to Malek's feet and he ran down the corridor the way he had come, giggling maliciously.  
Helgi shook her head, “That boy will get himself into so much trouble one day, he will not be able to get out of it, mark my words.” She put her hand on Eidra's shoulder, “Come child, to my room, you can sleep on a pallet there for the evening. A night's sleep always puts things in a different light.”

 

Slamming the door once was not enough, Loki wanted to slam it again and again until it splintered into firewood. He walked to her cot and with a roar, overturned it against the wall. He started pacing back and forth, muttering to himself, “If she prefers to keep company with the staff, so be it. She will not defy me. I will not allow it.”   
He took his tunic off and threw it across the room to the braziers where it lay looking as if it wanted to crawl up one leg and sacrifice itself to the heavens. He tossed his breeches on the floor beside his bed, threw on his robe, and sat on the edge of the bed, trembling, angry tears dropping to the floor below.   
He looked over to where her cot lay upended then stood, walked to the door, opened it, stopped, slammed it closed again. He walked over to her cot, stooped down and pulled her blanket from the pile on the floor then sat down in the chair before the fireplace, hugging the blanket, burying his face into it. He breathed in her scent, seeing her before him, her mahogany brown hair curling around her face, her soft lips in a wide smile, her eyes alit with an inner fire and he groaned, pulled the blanket closer to him, watching the fire, listening to the crackle and sputter fill the lonely silence of the room.


	14. 14

When Silas arrived to attend him the next morning, Loki flew into a rage that had Silas nearly tumbling down the stairs to the staff kitchen. When Eidra saw Silas's face, she jumped up from the kitchen table and ran into the laundry room to hide behind one of Artra's big kettles, sure that Loki was hot on Silas's heels.   
After a few minutes, Artra called into the laundry room, “Come child, he has just left for the hunt again. He will not be coming for you.” Eidra begged Silas to make sure that he was gone, just to be certain.   
“He is gone yes, but your cot has been shoved out into the hallway.”  
Artra elbowed Helgi, “It sounds like the prince is having a royal tantrum.”  
Eidra stomped up the stairs, down the corridor, folded her cot up and dragged it down the spiral staircase. “Helgi, can I put this in your room?”  
“Of course, child.” Helgi watched her drag the cot down the service corridor, her shoulders set, and she shook her head.

His breath was vapor in the frigid morning air, his foot in the stirrup at the end of the crossbow, gloved left hand slowly pulling the string to the catch. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Thor, one finger to his lips, the other pointing slowly ahead of them at a large buck, its tail flitting excitedly back and forth as it sniffed the air. Loki fitted a bolt into the chamber and raised the bow to his shoulder, wincing slightly at the tug across his chest, holding his breath as he sighted onto a spot just behind the front haunches. He followed the spot with his cross hairs as the deer sauntered a few more feet, large eyes scanning the woods, skin twitching, hoof stamping the ground.   
Loki's finger trembled at the trigger. He took another deep breath, held it, squeezed. The bolt drove into the deer's side just behind its shoulder and the deer leaped high into the air, twisting its head as if in disbelief. It bounced forward a few more yards before dropping to the ground, its snout buried in the reddening snow.  
“Well done, brother!” Thor cried. “Come.”  
They trotted to the deer, still shuddering as its muscles began to spasm, expending the last of its energy in the dance with death.  
Thor studied the terrain, found a slight decline behind them and dragged the deer to the hill, its head downhill, rolled the animal over to its back and splayed its legs outward. “Ready to get your hands dirty, Loki?”  
Loki pulled his short blade from a pouch slung across his chest and knelt down in the snow. He ran the knife along the deer's throat, then started to work on the joints, making a circular cut around the four joints to release the tension on the pelt. They worked in silence, the warm blood on Loki's hands recalling for him the morning of Winternights when he had taken Eidra to the stairwell and kissed her. He lifted the lungs out of the cavity and tossed them to the side in the pile of effluence growing in the snow between them.  
“I heard your door slam late last night, Loki. What was happening?”  
Loki gritted his teeth, the last person in the nine realms with which he wished to talk to about the incident last evening was Thor.  
“I slammed my door shut. It is a heavy door. What of it?”  
Thor glanced over at him, “And the yelling this morn?”  
Loki was washing his hands with handfuls of snow, “Have you set a spy upon me now?”  
Thor took a long piece of leather cord from his pouch and began to tie the back legs of the deer together, “I was walking past your door when the houseboy shot out into the hallway on a dead run.”  
“I was displeased with him. He therefore made the astute decision to remove himself from my chambers as swiftly as possible.”  
Loki was silent as he tied the forelegs together, knowing that Thor would worry the subject to death but preferring to give not so much as one word of information upon compulsion.  
“I had half a mind to believe that wench of yours was the cause of your outburst.”  
“If it had been so, would you not have seen her running from the room instead of the boy?”  
Thor cinched his cord tight, “What of her cot in the hall then?”  
Loki wiped his knife in the snow to clean it of blood. After drying it with his short cloak, he slid it into its sheath and stood, looking for a sturdy tree with low branches for use as a carrying pole.   
“You have not answered me.”Thor stood, undoing a hatchet from his belt, looking in kind for a long branch.  
“Because there is nothing to say.” Loki growled, turning to see Thor starting to chop into a middling long low maple branch.  
“Then it would seem you are losing your mind.”  
Loki watched Thor pick up the end of the branch and drag it over to the deer where he slid the branch between its tied legs.  
“Ready?” Thor grunted, one end of the branch on his shoulder as Loki hauled the other end up with a grimace.   
“Yes.”  
They rose, the full weight of the deer between them and started down the trail to where the horses were tethered.  
“I ask you out of concern,” Thor said as they trudged through the snow, “You have been not yourself this season. You are like a man possessed when you ride, your blood lust on Winternights when you chased that deer until you had a clear shot, it was as if nothing would stop you. You were reckless.”  
Loki threw the pole from his shoulder, Thor having to lean back in order not to fall forward onto the deer, “You have become far more concerned for my personal well being as of late, than is normal. What troubles you, dear brother?”  
Thor dropped his end of the pole, “I hear the servants talk as well, the nights you spend holed up in your chambers with naught for company but that wench. It is not healthy, it is not right. Father should find you a bride. You have been far too long without the companionship of a woman.”  
“I have no wish for the companionship of a woman, I have no wish for any companionship whatsoever!” He bellowed. “The subject is closed, now let us pick up the deer and head for home, it is growing late.”  
He lifted the branch, feeling Thor pick up his end.   
“Very well. You will tell me when you are ready.”   
Loki pursed his lips tightly as they headed down the trail together.

When Loki strode down the corridor and saw the cot gone, he threw the doors open to his chamber expecting to see the cot in its place beside the fireplace, willing her to be sitting there waiting for him. Upon seeing the empty space where her cot should have been, the strength drained from his legs. He dropped to his knees, closed his eyes, shock, anger catching the breath in his throat. He was at the door of his chamber, about to step into the hallway when Silas appeared.  
“Milord, may I assist you?”  
Loki stared at Silas as if he'd never heard him speak before, “Where is Eidra?”  
“She is helping in the kitchen.”  
Loki looked down the corridor to the spiral staircase. “Where is the cot that was in the corridor this morn?”  
Silas avoided Loki's gaze, “Eidra took it to Helgi's room. She said she was staying there now.”  
“Tell her she is to come to my chambers at once!” Loki turned and stalked into his room again.

It was no more than five minutes later that Silas reappeared in the doorway, his hands twisting the hem of his tunic,   
“Milord,”   
Loki was standing before the fire, still in his hunting clothes. He turned his head toward Silas. “She said...” Silas backed up a bit into the corridor, “She said she would not come to your chambers.” Silas backpedaled as Loki swooped down upon him.  
“Why!”  
“Sh...she said she would not..oh please Milord, forgive me...she said she would not serve a liar, and that never a foot would she set inside these chambers again until you apologized to her,” Silas ducked on instinct.  
“Apologize?!” He was insensate with rage, unable even to raise a hand to the boy, “I am a prince of the realm and she calls for me to apologize to her, a servant? She will stay there until crack of doom if that be the case!” He waved his hand at Silas, “Come, boy. Draw water for my bath.”  
Silas scrambled into the bedchamber as Loki stared down the hallway towards the staircase.

 

One week wore into another as Eidra remained downstairs in the staff kitchen. Jul was fast approaching and there was much preparation to do, baking and cooking, cleaning, mending. Eidra had become withdrawn, somber, her thoughts unable, unwilling to stray from Loki even though she believed her heart was the only one truly affected. Silas had told her of his response that evening and so she did not venture into the upper corridor, not even to travel through the palace.   
Loki would sit most nights before the fireplace, his hand stroking the blanket draped over his lap. Time and time again, he would start to rise from his chair, thinking to go down to the kitchen and beg her to return to his chambers, then pride would will out and he would sit there, seething with anger.   
One night, a little over a week before Jul, he stood in his bedchamber staring at his lone chair before the fireplace, strode out of the bedchamber and headed down the corridor, away from the staircase.

 

Eidra helped carry the trays of mutton ribs to the staff kitchen table in preparation for steaming that next day. Jul was finally here. She walked to the fireplace and stirred the porridge inside, lifting a spoonful and blowing on it to cool so she could taste it, when she noticed a sheet of parchment on the table. She looked about the kitchen for Helgi or Artra, but even Artra was gone, busy with preparations. She put the spoonful of porridge in her mouth, waving her hand at the heat and picked up the parchment.

I am sorry,

Please come to my chamber.

 

Eidra folded the paper and stuffed it into the pocket of her dress, her heart pounding. She searched the kitchen and laundry room once more, making sure Malek was nowhere to be found, since he had taken lately to pestering her incessantly. She had half a mind to stay where she was. Malek was not above playing tricks upon her. What if he had written the note instead of Loki. Not wanting to believe the parchment was false, but hardly daring to believe it was not, she trotted up the staircase and down the empty corridor.   
She knocked on the door to Loki's chamber. Receiving no answer, she pushed the door open and walked inside. She turned toward the fireplace where they'd spent so many nights sitting on the floor, playing dice and her eyes started to tear again. She sniffed angrily, wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. It was then she spied her blanket draped over the arm of one of the chairs before the fireplace. She walked over to it and snatched it up, muttering to herself, “The little thief.”   
When she stood back up, she realized there was not one chair now, but two before her.   
She looked at the new chair, her blanket slipping from her fingers to the floor. It was a heavy piece, done up in blond wood. The arms were carved with flowering vines in various stages of completion. The heavy legs spiraled to the floor, supporting the seat which was polished to a satin sheen, the backing was the most elaborate, the design mimicking the snakes on Loki's headboard but for one change. They were facing each other and in their open mouths, arched at the top of the back board, was carved a name, Eidra.  
She heard the door close behind her, and slow footsteps that stopped beside her. Loki stood there, hands behind his back, dressed in his evening robes.  
“It still requires a little refinement, but I wanted it here for Jul.”  
Eidra found her ability to speak temporarily lost.  
“Do you like it?”  
She nodded, running her fingers along the vines on the arm of the chair, closing her hand around the flower at the end of it.  
“Will you forgive me and return to my chamber?” he paused, “I am sorry.”  
“For what?” She traced the petals of the wooden flower with her fingertip.  
“For denying what you said was true. For denying that I wished to throw that whoreson from the nearest cliff for daring to touch you, to speak to you.”  
She chanced a look at him, saw the flash of anger in his eyes.  
“Then I am sorry that I did not show that little red haired bitch the the flat of my palm.”  
He laughed, a low chuckle, she felt his hand slip beneath hers, “All is forgiven, then?”  
She nodded as he caught her in a tender embrace which she returned with equal warmth.  
“I have been miserable, inconsolable without you, Eidra.” his voice was a whisper in her ear and she hugged him tighter.  
“Oh Loki, so have I,” she felt his hand slide up to her head, caress her hair.   
“I wish never to hear you call me by title again when we are here alone. Ken?”  
“I do ken.”  
He gently pushed her away, “I will have Silas return your cot. Tonight we may sit in our chairs together.” He swept a stray hair from her face. “It will be a good Jul.”

She watched Silas struggle with the cot up the staircase, her heart pounding in her ears as she fingered the Uruz. She had made her decision as she stood looking at the chair that Loki had commissioned for her. This was the man she wanted, the man who deserved to receive the necklace and all its symbolism, its power, and the power over her as well. He would either accept it or reject her but she could no longer suffer to hide her feelings. 

Eidra told Helgi of the chair, of her return to Loki's chamber.   
“He went to great lengths to repair the rift between you two. Take care. Malek will ask where you are tonight.”  
“Then you can tell him I have returned to serve Lord Loki. It is as simple as that.” Eidra heard Artra singing in the laundry room, “Everyone is in high spirits, Malek will be busy celebrating with the workers.”  
Helgi watched Eidra fidget with her necklace, “Keep that close to your heart, it is precious.”  
“Helgi, it was made to be given away. When I find a man I love, who loves me back, I will give the necklace to him. That is the purpose of the deflowering gift. It symbolizes the turning of a girl to a woman and a woman to a wife.” Eidra smiled at her. “I will be here early in the morning to help you.” Before she stood up, she leaned over and kissed Helgi's cheek.  
“If my mother had lived, I hope she would have been like you.” Eidra rested her head on Helgi's arm for a long moment.  
“My dear poppet,” Helgi whispered, bussed the top of Eidra's head.   
Eidra was suddenly up from the bench, “I must return to my chambers, Lord Loki will be returning soon.”  
Helgi stared at the stone steps a long time after she had left the kitchen.

 

When Loki opened the door to his chambers, he found Eidra sitting on the edge of the chair, staring into the fire, her hands clasped in her lap. She jumped up and ran to him, “Would you like me to draw you a bath?”  
He smiled at her, “I would at that. Have you yet eaten the evening meal?”  
She shook her head, she had been too nervous to eat but she kept such things to herself.  
“After you start the water, would you fetch our meals? You will sup with me.”  
Eidra walked into the bathing room and turned the handle to fill the large basin, trailing her hand in the water for a minute, pondering the necklace wrapped in a little packet beneath the blanket of her cot. She heard footsteps behind her and turned her head to see Loki standing there, stripped to the waist. The scar from the elven sword had faded to a light red line running diagonally down his chest. He had untied his long black hair from the leather thongs and now it hung in waves at his back. She shifted her gaze to the floor and stood, afraid that if she continued to stare at him, she would lose her nerve.  
“I will return, Milord.”  
“However are we to break you of that habit?” He clucked his tongue.  
“I am sorry, Loki.”  
His grin widened, “There 'tis not so hard. Off with you, I will not be long in here.”

 

When she pushed the door open, carrying the tray of food, he was standing beside the bed, pulling his evening robe over his head.  
She put the tray down in front of the fireplace and he crooked a finger to her.  
“I have something for you.”  
She glided over to the bed, “What more can you give me?”  
He held out another robe, smaller but nearly identical to the one he now wore, “It is more comfortable than the staff dress you wear. Go put it on.”  
She took the robe from his hand, the silk cool to the touch.   
“This is too fine for me.” She tried to hand it back to him but he simply pushed her towards the bathing room.  
“Nonsense, woman. Now go change. I wish to see if the seamstress has done her chore well.”  
In the bathing room, she dropped her dress to the floor, swiftly grabbing the robe and throwing it over her head. In doing so, she caught her image in the reflection of the polished metal panel. Twirling around, she smiled at the graceful way it flowed around her, at the way the silk hugged the curves of her hips, the swell of her breasts as the fabric hung in delicate folds from her shoulders. She felt indecent.  
“Eidra, come let me see you.” Loki called from the bed chamber.  
She picked up her dress, holding it before her like a shield, and walked out, her eyes trained to the floor, unable to look up at him, even when he took a hand and led her further into the room.  
“Put down your dress and stand up straight.”  
Upon reflex, she hugged the dress to her once more, then dropped it onto the floor.   
“Oh Eidra.” Loki breathed, “You are a true vision.” He twirled her around and smiled.  
“You do too much for me, Loki.”  
“I cannot begin to tell you what you have done for me.”   
He took her hand and kissed it, began to lead her towards the chairs, when she took her hand away and swallowed hard, now was as good a time as any.  
“Wait, I have something for you as well.”   
She ran to her cot and pulled the packet from under her blanket.  
When she handed it to him and backed away, he tilted his head with a lopsided smile, “What are you up to, little minx?”  
He untied the leather thong around the package and let the cloth lie open, the smile slipping from his face as he beheld the necklace.  
“Eidra, I cannot take this, it is yours to keep.” He held the packet out to her, shaking his head, but she pushed it back towards him.  
“It is mine to give not to keep.” She took the necklace from the packet then, reaching around his neck and tying it there as she continued.  
“When a girl becomes a woman, the deflowering gift is meant as a symbol, meant to be given to the one she loves, the one she wishes to share her life with. You may drive me again from this chamber and I would gladly accept it but for the chance to tell you of my feelings for you, such a heavy weight they have been on my heart.”  
She brought the pendant out to lay it over his robe and he caught her hand upon it where she could feel his heart thundering beneath her palm.  
“You cannot know what you are asking.”   
But Eidra nodded, “I do,”  
“Would you wish so to be bound to me thus?”   
Eidra smiled. Her heart felt like to leap out of her chest, “I love you, Loki, I would give my life for you.”  
He put a finger to her lips, his eyes searching her face, “Do not say that.”  
Eidra frowned, “Do not tell the truth?”  
“No, do not entertain such thought of death lest the spirits of the night hear,” He entangled his fingers into her hair and she closed her eyes.  
“I wish you to make me a woman. I give you the Uruz and all it means to me because I love you.” Eidra murmured.  
Loki's hand began to tremble. “I had been alone for so long when you came into my life Now I fear to show you the depth and breadth of a love such as mine is for you.”  
She wanted to cry for joy, he had said it, had said he loved her. She gazed up at him, “What is there to fear, Loki?”  
He grabbed her by the shoulders and stared into her eyes, “My desire for you, my passion, my determination to keep you by my side for the rest of our days. The gods save whomever should endeavor to come between us.”  
“I bend to your will, I share your wish.”  
His words caught in his throat then, he put his hand behind her head and covered her mouth with his own, the contact sending shivers like stars along her spine. She met his tongue with her own, her hands splayed out across his chest, fingernails scratching lightly at the silk. A slight rush of cold air brought her to her senses then and she pushed him from her, gently. “We should close the drapes.”  
He nodded, eyed her and they both ran laughing for the long drapes that spanned the balcony beyond the braziers, pulling both sets from either side until they met in the middle, this time to hold each other in a lovers embrace. His mouth fastened to her throat, trailing down to the swell of her breasts where he moaned as he breathed in her scent, a mixture of fresh air, and wood smoke, deeper still, the musk of her sex as her desire rose to overcome her fear. She felt his own arousal, hard and free beneath his robe as he pressed her to him, his arms crossing her back.  
He lifted her up, striding to the bed, her legs wrapped about his waist, where he lay her down, stood then, taking her in, committing the moment to memory. The trusting look on her face, eyes half lidded with unbridled desire, a hint of trepidation, the robe splayed across her body like a shimmering second skin. He sat on the bed beside her, trailing his fingers across the flat plane of her stomach, smiling as she shivered, her hand rising up his forearm beneath the long sleeve of his robe.  
“Teach me,” she whispered, felt his hand glide down her stomach to her thigh where he slid the hem of her robe upward. He turned then and lay down, matching her length, his arm cradling her head, kissing her neck, her shoulder, the shell of her ear. He smiled at the slight elven point, nipping at the lobe, the sensation causing her shudder, her hand to fasten on his shoulder as she pulled him in closer. He gazed then into her eyes.   
“I do not wish to hurt you. Do not fear to stop me ere you wish..”  
Her nod sent his free hand beneath her robe, his fingers to the cleft between her thighs, the heat therein, the slick softness at his fingers causing him to throb hard against her thigh. He started to move his fingers against her, his touch bringing her hips up from the bed to press into his hand, a tempo to keep her writhing on the coverlet, panting, her hands gripping the silk of her robe, twisting it as the tension built within.   
She begged him to kiss her and he readily obliged, watching her, overcome at her beauty, the wonder at the sensations coursing through her, bringing her closer to her peak. He bent his head then and closed his lips over one nipple through the silk of her robe, caressing the hard nub with his tongue, an act that served to push her over the edge, her legs clenching together as she came against his hand in wrenching spasms. He pressed his mouth to hers, taking her cries of ecstasy to himself as he rose above her, breathless, raising the robe over her head to drop it on the floor beside the bed.   
“I want to see you as well,” She pushed up on her elbows, “I have never seen you without being afraid to look upon you.”  
He leaned back on his heels and drew his own robe over his head, suddenly self conscious, his gaze thrown to the side so that he could not see her reaction. She stared at her dark prince kneeling on the bed before her, full hard, his long hair wild about his face, body flushed with desire, his lean muscular body aglow in the torchlight.   
“My beautiful prince.” her hand brushed against his chest as she reached up to pull him down, arching beneath him as she felt his lips close once again upon the bud of one breast, then the other, his tongue swirling around the tight flesh, hair falling to the side to rest upon her arm like a silken blanket. She felt transported, her whole being afire with the urge that had filled her when she had given him the necklace now fully realized.  
“I am ready,” She whispered.  
He positioned himself between her thighs, trembling with desire, love, terrified by the union he was about to form with her, yet welcoming it, unwilling to stop. He lunged at her shoulder, biting at the tender flesh there, his manhood poised at the very heart of her, feeling her hips rock upward to accept him, he moving forward slowly, entering her, silk, soft, tight, until he was sheathed inside, his forehead against hers, his breath ragged with lust.   
Fighting the urge to possess her fully, take her fast and hard, he began finally, when he felt able to move without triggering his fast release, to move in slow, deep thrusts that were sweet, intense, calculated, gazing at one another, their eyes speaking volumes where words now failed them. When she began to meet his thrusts and match them, arching forward to take him deeper, her hands in fists at his back as she entwined her legs over his, wanting to lock him there pressed to her, forever, he could no longer hold back. She kissed the hollow of his throat as he dipped toward her, tongue slick against his skin, tasting, savoring, exploring, one hand now entwined in his hair, gripping it tightly.   
Wrapping his arms around her waist, he lifted her from the bed with animal passion, bucking ever deeper, groaning as she clenched around him, ripples caressing his length, panting, crying out against his shoulder until his rhythm began to break and he could no longer hold back the rising tide. Not with a roar but a whispered “Oh”, he spilled into her, lips against her own, holding her as if he would never let her go.  
“Loki,” the sound of his name spoken by the woman he loved, served to move his hips once more, another spasm to close his eyes, weaken his body as his head dropped to nestle beneath her chin hearts thundering together before he withdrew to lay beside her, his head resting on her shoulder, arms entangled with one another until the cold drove them to burrow beneath the covers. It was a long time before they spoke, their hands playing together, interlacing, caressing, teasing.  
“You inflame me once again, little minx,” he whispered.   
She lay on her side then, facing him, her hand at his cheek, “I shall try to behave.”   
He shook his head and grinned , “I never said you must behave,” then he heaved a great sigh,“Eidra, I have never known contentment like this.”  
The thought saddened her. She pressed herself into his chest, his arm over her, at her back as she peered up at him..  
“Never before?”  
He looked down at her, curled at his side, “I have never given myself to someone I love, have never felt so completely loved in return. Eidra, you must stay by my side, promise me this, I cannot be without you.”  
She kissed him, her hand nestling in the scant dark hair at his chest, “I am where I wish to be, Loki.”

 

The fire in the fireplace had died to embers, the braziers similarly low when Eidra again opened her eyes. She shivered, the fires would need to be rekindled. Loki was pressed to her back, his arm around her waist. She made to rise from the bed but he tightened his hold with a groan.   
“The fires have nearly gone out, the room is freezing, and there is faint light beneath the drapes. It is Jul morning. Silas will be coming with more firewood.”  
He planted rough kisses at the back of her neck that nearly crumbled her resolve. She arched against him, he returning the motion until she heard footsteps coming down the corridor.   
“Loki, let go,” she hissed, disentangling herself from him, snatching the robe from the floor and pulling it over her head. She ran to the fireplace, her feet numbed by the frigid marble. She had just lifted the poker to move the embers in preparation to place new wood on the pile when the door swung open and Thor strode in.   
“Good Jul, brother! Are you ready to ride?”  
Eidra hunched before the fire, her heart hammering in her chest at how close Thor had come to finding her abed with Loki. Surely he would comment about her new garment though she was more frightened he would surmise what had happened between them.  
“I am awake but scarcely ready.” Loki sat up and she could fair feel his eyes burning into her back as she stoked the fire back to life.  
“Well arise, we must meet in the courtyard to ride about the city. It is tradition.” Thor looked about the room, “Has your servant wench let the fire go out? It is cold.”  
“Forgive me, Milord.” Eidra said as she stood, hands clasped in front of her, face red. Thor cast a glance at her and at once his stance changed. Dim as the room was, she knew he'd noticed the new robe she sported.  
“What is this?” he cried .   
She stepped back until she was nearly inside the fireplace and flinched as Thor strode over to her, picking at the fabric of the robe at her shoulder.  
“Brother, did you give this to her or did she sneak it from your wardrobe?”  
Loki had gathered his own robe and thrown it over his head. He walked to the fireplace, holding his hands out to the low flames.  
“I gave it to her as a gift,” he rubbed his temples with his fingers, “Leave me to get dressed and I shall meet you soon.”  
Thor shook his head, his blond ponytail swinging like the tail of a horse, “A fine robe for a servant. The only gift she needs is the privilege of serving you, brother. You do indulge her far too much.” He took one more look at Eidra. “Make haste, we ride soon.”  
As the door closed behind Thor, they realized they had both been holding their breath. Loki laughed, his voice tremulous. Eidra put her hands to her cheeks.  
“Oh Loki, that was much too close.”  
“I could have countered him with the many times I have walked in upon his indiscretions. I would put a lock upon that door would it not raise questions with him.”  
She quickly helped him with his ceremonial dress though it took longer than usual because he kept kissing her in between garments, while she laughingly pushed him away, her fears allayed by his loving attention.  
“When my brother and I return, I will take the morning meal with you, then to celebrations.”  
He caught her up in his arms then, “I love you, Eidra.”   
“I love you, Loki.” His smile intoxicated her and she returned it as he strode through the door, leaving her to start her day, happier than she'd ever been in her life.


	15. 15

Winter's grip was tight, ham-fisted, the days short as the landscape was steadily buried beneath a blanket of snow, but what were short days and long nights to two young lovers who could hardly be bothered about the world outside, so wrapped up were they in each other.   
Loki had convinced Eidra to return to the stables yet again and they would, on pleasant days, bundle up and ride through the countryside. They would stop at villages along the way she acting the servant gladly. They had more than once made it as far as the village of Rialo where he would treat her to more bolts of cloth from the seamstresses shop to make dresses with. She would protest, he would distract, the bolts would be there on her cot in the morning, it serving for little else most of the evening as they clung to each other in blissful slumber upon his bed.  
The seamstress, whose name was Ren, would often invite them in by the fireplace in the kitchen for a mug of mulled cider or mead and they would exchange gossip about the kingdom. Ren, like Eidra, was also half breed, though she was half Alfari, half Asgardian and the two women made fast friends.   
Other days, Loki would take Eidra to his most cherished locations, the places where he came to think, to hide from palace life.   
There was a clearing half a league beyond the city limits, on a high bluff, where the whole of the city lay before them, the sun glinting off its buildings, fountains, gilded statues, the palace rising over all, commanding the skyline. They would stand and drink in the sight, she wrapped within his cloak. One day, he had pointed to a spot on the palace midway to the top, “There lies our chamber. If you squint, you can just make out the railing of the balcony.”  
One such place had for many years been his and Thor's hiding place though Thor cared little for it now. Hidden down a long forgotten, overgrown road was a large waterfall spanning a wide cliff that rose many feet, the water falling into a large shallow pool though winter had stopped the torrent in a great sheet of blue-green ice.  
The ride back to the palace was always a bit sad, knowing they would have to be servant and master when they stepped through the gates into the courtyard. She would dismount and follow him through the stables, out into the arena and up into the south courtyard where she would wait for him to get a few steps ahead of her. Only then would they enter the palace.   
The cold nights had changed little for them, though now they were more often spent on the bed, playing games like hnefatafl. Loki, brought up in a military household, was a practiced strategist but once Eidra caught on to the game, she would often trap his king, leaving him to sit there, legs crossed, head tilted to one side as he replayed his moves in his head while she laughed. Backgammon, however, afforded his chance to return the favor and she was more often than not, the loser.   
Other nights, they would sit in their chairs before the fire, she with her lap loom across the arms as she wove the shuttle in and out while Loki watched, mesmerized. He would often read or write correspondence.   
Then there were the nights they would spend beneath the coverlet in each others arms, Eidra as eager to learn his body as he was hers, the touches he craved, the words that brought his desire to greatest heights. The kisses that excited her, how she loved to be held, tight, skin to skin with him. She would drive him mad with her deliberate, slow caresses across the surface of his skin, whisper soft along his collarbone, the skin inside his wrist and a thousand other places. Soon after their first coupling, she had lain her head on his stomach and held him in her hand, driving him to distraction with her strokes, strong and firm, stopping to giggle as he would moan, tap her on the back of the head as she teased him.   
“Tell me?” She had purred, “Would you call this your rod?”  
“For want of a better....gods......word.”  
She rose up on one arm, the other hand still preoccupied, “What say you to staff?”   
Another squeeze that had him shuddering into her hand while she smiled down at him.  
“Perhaps, your scepter, ha! A scepter for a prince!” she stood him upright, her thumb stuttering across the tip while he gripped the sheets, desperate for release.  
“Call it what you will, rod, staff, scepter, dagger, only woman, do not stop!”  
She would stay with him in bed, rising early most mornings to tend the fire, returning to her cot as Silas was often there early in the morning to collect the chamber pots and deliver firewood.  
One night, however, she had been particularly tired, failing to rise before dawn. Her heart had thundered her awake as she heard the door open followed by soft footsteps across the floor that stopped before the door to the bath. She opened her eyes to see Silas who had been standing there, his mouth open in a round O. She touched her finger to her lips then, and after a tense moment where she wondered if he was going to drop down in a faint, he had nodded, continuing on to his chore. Forever after, he would arrive a little later in the morning, giving her time to rise from Loki's bed.  
Helgi was happy at the change in Eidra, the beatific expression upon her face, the laughter in her voice. Even Malek, who would join them on occasion in the staff kitchen for the morning meal, could seldom shake her. Once, however, he had come close.   
She'd bent over the table to gather the bowls to carry to Artra for washing. Malek, sitting on the opposite side of the table, was given a view of the depth of her cleavage, noticing in particular, the love bite Loki had left on the swell of one breast.   
“Eidra, who has been courting you?”  
She flushed bright red, “No one courts me.”  
Malek pursed his lips, nodded, “Of course not.” He crooked his finger towards her and as she leaned towards him, cautious, he whispered, “What of your love bite?”  
She stood up, adjusting her dress, praying she wouldn't stammer as she replied, “I burnt myself helping Helgi one day.”  
Malek laughed, raised an eyebrow. “An unusual place for such an injury.”  
Helgi, hearing her name, raised her head from the pot of porridge on the fire, “What say you?”  
“Eidra said she burnt herself helping you one day, perhaps you should put some unguent on it as it looks rather angry,” Malek waved at Eidra, “Show her.”  
Helgi straightened up and strode over to Eidra who was glaring at Malek.   
“Let me see, child, you never told me about any burns.”  
Eidra pulled the neckline of her dress away from her body, her eyes wide as Helgi looked at the love bite for a long minute, then met her eyes, “I shall get something for it.”  
“Oh Odin's beard.” Malek cried, slamming his hands on the table. They watched him stalk off down the corridor and only then did Helgi turn to her with her hands on her hips. “Would you care to sit down and talk to me, Eidra?”  
Eidra shook her head, “What is there to talk about?”  
Helgi put her hand on Eidra's shoulder, “About him.”  
“Malek?” Eidra stared at the floor, “He is a pest, it is as simple as that.”  
Helgi turned Eidra towards her, lifting her chin up to look into her eyes, “You know fair well who I speak of. Child, give up this dangerous game you play.”  
Eidra put her hands up to Helgi's round cheeks, “I cannot, it is far too late. Please will you keep our secret.”   
Helgi put a hand to her forehead, “You ask so much of me, poppet. You know I shall,” she pulled Eidra's head to her breast, stroking her hair, “What am I going to do with you?”

 

Thor was perplexed, in particular, at the seeming loss of his ability to pester his brother to madness as he had in the past. Loki was near unflappable, being civil to Sif, much to her surprise, even when Thor chided him about his absence on their morning rides as of late he answered quite flippantly that he had been sleeping in. Thus it came to pass that Thor chose to confront him about his behavior one evening after a meeting of the High Council.   
Outside the Great Hall in the corridor, the Council members had gathered, Odin with Frigga's hand on his arm, speaking to Magnus. At a lull in conversation,Thor elbowed Loki.  
“Brother, you have been uncharacteristically happy for a good stretch of time. Tell me, what miracle has occurred to break you out of your perpetual dark mood?”  
Loki grinned, tense, “Must I have a reason to be pleasant?”  
Thor returned the smile, “Why yes. You are not yourself.”  
“If you give me a reason to be cross, I am sure I can accommodate you,” Loki replied as his smile faded.  
Odin overhearing their exchange, watched them, “My son, do not goad your brother. If his reason be enough for him, then it should be enough for you.”  
Thor frowned as they wandered down the corridor, “Perhaps you should ask him then, father. He may answer you more readily.”  
Loki cast Thor a look that would have melted steel.  
“Perhaps, Loki has found himself a woman. Is that your secret? Are you in love, dear brother?”  
At Thor's side, Sif laughed, a melodious sound that raised Loki's hackles.  
“Oh, my love. I see him, he roams the halls alone. If it be a woman, she is invisible.”  
Loki fought the sudden all-consuming urge to slam both of their heads together, “It is no woman.”  
Thor put a hand to his shoulder. “Is it a man then?”  
Loki sighed deep. “It is neither man nor woman,” He rankled inwardly, “It is simply a change of perspective. Does that answer suffice?”  
“No, merely because you have been sullen forever. A mere change of perspective as you call it, cannot possibly be enough to raise your spirits to the sky,” Thor clapped him hard on the back, “It is your way to be sullen, brooding, either you will return to yourself or we shall ferret out whatever has dispelled your dark clouds. Either way.”

 

Loki left them at the door to his chambers. Upon entering therein and finding Eidra gone, he stepped out into the hall, making certain the others had left, then he started for the staff kitchen to look for her.

Eidra sat at the table, her back to the stairs, using the light of the fireplace to sew by though she was, at the moment, paused, wondering if she should bother to stab Malek with the needle.  
“You still hide the name of your lover. Why?”  
Eidra glared up at him as he stood to her right, beside the kitchen table.  
“I am hiding nothing. I do not wish to share my private life with you and that is that. You came here to fetch Silas now do so and away with you.”  
He put his hands on her shoulders, “Now Eidra, why must you be so short with me? I am only curious.”   
She shrugged angrily, trying to rid herself of his touch, “You are a cad and a gossip, you only wish to make me talk so that you may tell the palace rats something more of value than the current state of the storehouses.”  
“Not true, Eidraaa...”  
She felt his hands leave her shoulders quite abruptly and she jumped up with a scream as Malek's head came down hard on the table, pinned there at the neck by Loki's hand.   
“This is the second time I have found you with your hand on her person!” He growled close in Malek's ear.  
“Milord, I meant no harm.” Malek grunted, his eyes squeezed shut, tears staining the worn wood of the table.  
Loki picked Malek up and slammed him to the table again. Malek cried out, his arms flailing.  
“Whether you meant no harm is irrelevant, that you TOUCHED her at all, is. There will be no more warnings, you whoreson. DO YOU KEN?!” He shouted in Malek's ear.  
Malek nodded as best he could, his cheek scraping the rough wood. “I am sorry, Milord, I ken, I ken!”  
Loki hauled him up and shoved him away from the table where he stumbled, nearly losing his footing, catching himself on the wall.   
“Be gone, let not even your shadow cross mine from this day forward,” Loki snarled, “GO!”  
Eidra watched Malek scramble away from them down the corridor without so much as a glance backward.  
“What was he doing to you?” Loki swung around to glare at Eidra.  
“He was asking me questions. He was not hurting me.”  
Loki looked down the corridor the way Malek had gone. “He touched you, that is enough for me.”  
Eidra put a hand to her forehead, “And now he will spread word that Lord Loki came to my rescue once again and the rumors will grow worse.”  
He threw his hands in the air, “Did you expect me to stand by and let him manhandle you?”  
Eidra put a finger to her lips. “No more talk until we are in our chambers. The walls have ears, Milord.”  
Loki drew his hand through his hair, “Come then, I was looking for you and have found you.”

Loki shut the door behind him, “It was not meet that he touch you!”  
Eidra threw her hand towards the door, “Sometimes you must practice self control. Whether he was right or wrong, if you had come up behind him and said his name, it would have had the same effect as knocking his head against the table.”  
Loki crossed his arms, “It would not have stayed with him as long. I was angry, and I shall not suffer the woman I love to be pestered by a lowly field hand. Am I so wrong for that?”  
Eidra put her arms atop her head, “Oh Loki, words, rumors are more dangerous than any one weapon, they stab more deeply, wound more thoroughly. Please tell me you ken.”  
Loki reached out and grabbed her arm, hauling her to his chest where he caught her in a blistering kiss that made her body tingle all the way to the soles of her feet, “I only ken that I love you more deeply every passing day. If you wish for me to have restraint then I shall endeavor to do so, only do not expect profound results.”  
She took what he could give then, soothed him, reassured him, cradling him in her arms as they lay together in his bed, talking of everything save the incident in the kitchen.  
“The fields shall be blessed and readied for planting in a few days time. The moon is full now.”  
Eidra nodded, stroked his hair, his comfort mirroring her own, “Mmhmm.”  
“Silas this year is to go to the fields, is he not? He approaches twelve seasons.”  
Eidra put her head up, “I did not know you took notice of such a thing.”  
“He is my houseboy, why would I not?”  
Eidra shrugged, “I simply did not think you would notice.”  
Loki kissed the crook of her neck, nipped the skin, “Should I keep him from the fields? Is he of more value here than out there?”  
Eidra was tongue tied for a moment, his attention stopping her words. “I think it would be wonderful to keep him in the palace.. oh gods yes right there....”  
“Then it is settled, he shall remain in the palace come planting time.”  
“Thor is right, you indulge me too much.”  
He rose over her, “Let me be the judge of such things.”

 

She was sick. She could not recall feeling so horrid since she'd been a little girl when she'd suffered with a terrible ague that had left her delirious and weak for nearly a moon. She had sicked up her morning meal then made her way to the staff kitchen, doubled over. She lay now with her head on the kitchen table while Helgi stroked her back, held a hand to her forehead.  
“I feel no fever. Child, go and lay down, Lord Loki will ken if you do not run at his beck and call.”  
Eidra nodded, “I shall as soon as my stomach feels it has had enough. Why now Helgi? I thought to make it through the winter without falling ill.”  
“You know this is the time of sickness. Come, I will walk with you.”  
By the time they had made Loki's chamber, she was feeling a bit better but Helgi still insisted she lay down. She crawled beneath the coverlet on her cot while Helgi promised to check on her later. She sorely wished Loki was there. At least she would have someone to talk to. She dozed a bit, the warmth from the fire lulling her to sleep, her mind drifting with half remembered dreams until she awoke, sat up, the last thought that had gone through her head propelling her to her feet.  
Helgi was sitting at the kitchen table again, chunking up potatoes and putting them in a cast iron kettle when Eidra came down the staircase at a run. “Helgi, oh Helgi!”   
“Goodness child whatever is wrong?” Helgi stood from the table and opened her arms, Eidra fitting into them, her hands to her mouth.  
“Is anyone else here?”  
Helgi walked down to the laundry room, peeked in at Artra who was dozing by the kettles. Volsa was somewhere in the palace proper.   
Helgi stroked Eidra's hair, watched her shiver. “It is safe. What has you so frightened, Eidra.”   
“I fell asleep in my bed for a bit,.” Eidra's words were delivered rapid fire, she scarce drew breath between them, “..then I woke up and lay there for a while, just thinking, as one is wont to do when alone. I wondered what had made me sick, a bit of bad meat, an underdone piece of dough then my thoughts turned to illness when I realized that I have not bled for two moons!”  
Helgi stumbled backwards to sit hard on the bench, “Sweet Valhalla, Eidra, tell me you are mistaken, that you must have miscounted.”   
Eidra sat on the bench seat beside her. “No, Helgi, not since before Jul. I am certain.”  
“Now tell me that you have had a dalliance with a handsome young stable boy.”  
Eidra stared into the fire. “I would ere I could, Helgi.”  
“Odin's silver beard, I will tell Silas to fetch his mother. She is the best midwife in Asgard and she will have remedies for this, I am sure.”  
Eidra started up from the bench, “Remedies? What do you mean?”  
Helgi took her arm and sat her back down beside her. “There are elixirs that you can take, compounds that will cause a miscarriage, I will help you...”  
“Helgi!” Eidra pushed her away, “No! Gods no.”  
Helgi put her hand on Eidra's arm and Eidra flinched from her. Helgi reached again, gripping her arm hard.   
“What will you do? You are just a servant girl. It will be the bastard child of a prince. What if he turns you out with the baby? Or worse!”  
“Helgi, he loves me and I love him.”  
Her face softened. She took Eidra's hands in hers then, “I do not doubt it, but love can only stand up to so much in this world.”  
Eidra stuck her chin forward, “This will be a child born out of love, tell me that is wrong.”  
Helgi sighed, brushed a strand of grey hair back from her face, “You know that it is not but you are in this about as deep as you can go without drowning.”  
Something in her words struck Eidra, and she nodded, put her head down on her knees. “How shall I tell him?”  
“I do not know, poppet. Tell him the truth at the very least. Then we will go from there.”

 

But she could not bring herself to tell him. Not yet. She had begged off the blessing of the fields a couple of days before, claiming she felt ill and Loki had worn a worried look as he knelt by the cot. “Go to our bed, you have no need to stay here.”  
“No, I will be fine, I would not want anyone to see me there.”  
“Should I fetch Clotho to attend you?”  
She shooed him out the door then, telling him all she needed was rest. He had promised to have her morning meal brought up to her and she had nodded, unable to tell him that it would likely make her sicker.  
In the week to follow, Helgi told her that she had asked Petar what would soothe morning sickness and Eidra had quailed.   
You did not tell her who you were asking this for, did you?”  
Helgi had rolled her eyes, “Of course not! Do you thinkI am so ignorant? She said to have a crust of dry bread on hand in the morning to settle your stomach. It works wonders.”  
And it had. Finally Eidra was able to rise at dawn and continue with her chores though she ached to tell Loki her secret more and more each day. She soon had Helgi asking Petar advice on everything from what she should or should not eat, how much lifting she should do, even whether sexual relations were safe to continue.   
“Child,” Helgi chided her, “Any more questions and Petar shall start asking questions of her own.”  
Eidra had apologized, “I must ask about what I do not know.”  
She had to laugh to herself when Helgi had blushed to tell her that she could still lie abed with Loki at this time. If nothing else, being with child had increased her desire, and more than once, Loki was taken aback at her lust for him. One evening she had waited behind the door for him to arrive from the stables, drenched with sweat, dirty. He had not even been able to remove his cloak but that she had pulled him to the bed and was atop him, one hand on his chest, the other undoing his breeches.  
Her energy was boundless, as was her joy as the third moon passed and she knew for certain. Now she sought a time to tell him.


	16. 16

Loki was up before her yet again, at the railing of the balcony looking out across the city. She lay there for a few moments, drinking in his silhouette framed by the parted drapes before she spoke.   
“What wakes you so early?”   
He turned, headed to the bed where he sat down. “Come, rise Eidra. The thaw has started, it is nearly Eostre, spring is on the way, perhaps the waterfall has melted a bit. We will ride today.”  
He rose from the bed and walked to the wardrobe.  
Ride? She put her hand over her stomach, “I cannot ride, Loki.”  
He glanced over his shoulder, a tunic in his hand. “Why? if Helgi has chores for you only tell me and I will release you from them.”  
She sat up in bed, the coverlet pulled to her chest, “It is not that,”  
“Is it your horse? If you require a gentler one, I will provide. Come now.” He returned to the bedside and held out a tunic of his own for her to don.  
She was trembling now, “It is not the horse.”  
Loki stared at her, hands on his hips, “If it is not your chores, nor the horse then what is it that has made you so reticent?”  
She threw her legs over the edge of the bed, pulling her robe over her head. “I have something I must tell you.”  
Loki's hands dropped to his side, a look of puzzlement on his face.  
“Come sit in the chair before the fire, I will rekindle it a bit.”  
Loki sat down, watching her as she tossed a couple of small logs upon the embers.  
When she was seated in her chair beside him, she took a deep breath and blew it out.   
“Loki, I am with child.”  
He turned to her, his gaze intense, “Are you certain?”  
“I have not bled for three moons, the sight of food before midday turns my stomach...”  
At once he was on the floor before her chair, “Who have you told of this?”  
Her eyes flitted to his and away, “Helgi only. No one else.”  
He stood, started to pace about the room, hands on his head, muttering to himself, “I am to be a father.... we are to have a child!”  
He knelt again and kissed the tops of her hands. “We shall have a baby!”  
She brought his hands to her cheek, “I was so afraid you would be furious with me.”   
He laughed, squeezed her shoulders, “Furious? I am overjoyed! You must have a new wardrobe, dresses...”  
Eidra nodded, “I will speak with Helgi on such matters and we will make them ourselves for they must hide me as well my prince.”  
Loki stood up, “Would it that there were no need.” he muttered.  
“But if Thor were to find out, he would surely make it most difficult for you.”  
Even such somber caution could not dim his enthusiasm, however and all at once, he was before her again, his smile lighting up his whole face. “Hang the oaf. Could my life be any more complete?”  
Her own smile faded, “But what shall happen when it is time for the baby to be born?”  
“I will arrange for you to travel to Rialo when your time approaches,” he rubbed her arms, “We have loyal friends who will assist us and in the meantime, I will endeavor to soften father's heart. I promise someday you will stand proudly at my side.”  
He put his hand to her belly, fingers splayed out across it. “From this day on you will lift not a finger, I will care for you.”  
Eidra shook her head, put her hand over his, “I cannot let you do such a thing, if we are to keep this secret, nothing must change.”  
“But there are chores much too heavy for a woman in your condition.” Loki protested.  
“ 'Tis early yet. I will govern myself accordingly, my love.”  
He lay his head in her lap, “I will entrust Helgi with your care in that aspect. She will see that you are careful.”  
Eidra stroked his cheek, “I promise I shall be.”

 

“It is not right!” Thor cried, pacing the floor before the throne, “Father, he spends all his free time holed up in his rooms with that servant wench.”  
Odin, chin in hand, gazed at Thor, “And how is it you know what happens behind closed doors? Is it not possible that your brother does as he has done all these years. Why do you think he wastes his time with a mere servant?”  
Thor slapped a hand to his forehead, “I have seen the way he indulges her, he has taught her to ride a horse, buys her bolts of cloth to sew with...”  
“What of it. My manservant Kalo knows how to ride a horse, he almost surpasses me in skill, in fact. I have given him many fine gifts for his seasons of service..”  
“She is a woman, would you teach a servant woman to ride?”  
Odin was silent for a moment, “Continue.”  
“I have heard him apologizing to her. I have passed by his chamber doors and heard laughter, whispered voices. When I try to talk to him of her, he refuses. Does it not add up?”  
Odin clasped his hands together at his stomach, “You take a studied interest in this matter, are you certain that it is not in retribution? He did win her from you, did he not?”  
Thor scowled. “I was distracted, he took advantage of it, if not for that, I would have won the contest. You will see, father, he treats her differently. I will find a way to show you.”

 

Silas, Helgi and Eidra were sitting at the kitchen table talking about the upcoming feast in the Great Hall. Eidra sewed while Helgi prepared dough for bread. Eidra had been selected once again to serve and she sighed, “It could be worse, though if there is entertainment this time, I may find myself locked up at the end of the evening.”  
“What is the feast for?” Silas asked.  
“It is a meeting to discuss the planting season with the town elders in the surrounding villages. I say it is another reason to get together, eat and drink themselves into oblivion.” Helgi sniffed.  
Eidra had been working on her latest dress and now she paused, her hand holding the needle in the air, in the middle of a stitch. A smile grew upon her face and she looked at Helgi. “I felt it.”  
Helgi glanced at Silas then to her, “That is wonderful, dear. How long until that dress be finished?”  
“Felt what?” Silas cast a curious look to Helgi.   
“The baby moved. I shall be back.” Eidra leaped from the bench and ran up the stairs, leaving Helgi pale, Silas with a look of shock on his face.  
“Eidra is going to have a baby?”  
Helgi sat there, her hands working the dough before her, waiting a time before she spoke.  
“She did not mean to say it.”  
“But is she? I know she lies abed with Lord Loki. Is the child his?”  
Helgi was wide eyed, “How do you know, you little whelp?”  
Silas shrugged, “I have seen them asleep together.”  
Helgi groaned, “I told them to take a care..and your mother tells you far too much about babies.”  
He tilted his head, “Does this mean she will marry Lord Loki?”  
Helgi laughed aloud as they heard steps down the stairs. Eidra reappeared, taking her seat across from Helgi again.   
“He is still away.”  
“Eidra, are you going to have a baby?” Silas had turned to look at her. She put her hands to her mouth.  
“Oh gods, I forgot myself.”  
She looked at Helgi who wore a disgusted look on her face, “Yes, Silas, but you must keep it a secret for my sake.”  
Silas thought, nodded. “I will. When will you have it?”  
“I believe by the end of summer.”  
“Will it be a boy or a girl?”   
Eidra picked up her sewing, “I know not. I would hope it be a boy though I will be happy if it be a girl as well so long as it is healthy.”  
“I hope it be a boy too, we have too many girls around here already,” Silas remarked as Helgi and Eidra laughed.

 

Loki was in high spirits that evening when he appeared at his chambers just before the evening meal. He managed to sneak up behind Eidra and scare her as she was folding his tunics on the bed. She turned to swing at him and he shoved her onto the coverlet where they proceeded to wrestle. She squealed uproariously, trying to best him. He would get a pinch in one place, a spank the other, she would trap his arm to the mattress, poke him where he was most ticklish. He was, however, the stronger of them and he eventually managed to pin her down, breathless, their ensuing kiss hungry, desperate, the rush of adrenaline coursing all over her skin as pure lust consumed them.  
“Wait,” She pushed him back a bit and he yielded, “I have something to tell you.”  
“What is it, my little minx?”  
“I felt the baby move today,” she sat up with him, “just a flutter, but I felt it.”  
Loki leaned over and kissed her stomach, “And so soon, he will be strong.”  
She put her hands on her hips. “A he, says you. Perhaps a she, says I.”  
“Then she shall be strong. A fine big girl, one who will become a warrior,” he rose from the bed. “now to find a name.”  
Eidra stood shaking her head as she started to refold the pile of tunics. “Have you thought of any?”  
“I confess I have thought of boys names alone, like Jörundr, or Kali?”  
She looked over her shoulder at Loki, “What do they mean? The name must reflect the child?”  
“Kali means cold.” He came up behind her, kissed the back of her neck and she shivered.   
“Cold, I do not want our baby to be cold. Think harder upon it.”  
“Magnús? It means mighty.”   
Eidra smiled, “Mighty, I like that, and I like the sound of it. We shall agree on that one for now, unless we find another name we feel is better. Oh I felt it again.”   
She put her hand to her stomach where it was soon joined by his.  
“When shall I feel it too?” Loki looked crestfallen.  
“In time, my prince,” she caressed his cheek.   
“And if it be a girl, what names have you thought of?”  
She picked up the pile of folded tunics and carried them to the wardrobe where Loki opened the door for her. Loki followed her back to the bed where she started on the pile of breeches.  
“I have thought of names from my family. Brenna, it means dark-haired, Cait, maybe. Cait means pure. I have always been partial to Cait, or Clare, it means bright.”  
“Leave these out for tomorrow,” Loki took a pair of breeches and put them aside, “I like Cait, the way it rolls off the tongue, and the meaning, I also like Clare. You must name the girl though, so I will accept Cait.”  
Her smile was gentle, “We shall first have to see what fate gives us.”

 

Eidra turned to the side and smoothed her dress down before her, looking to see if there was a noted difference at first glance but the billow of the skirt was still cover enough for her. Loki had lain in bed beside her that previous night and he had observed that her belly had started to round out a bit, had in fact fallen asleep with his hand draped across it.   
She flounced the dress out again and glanced at Helgi who stood by the fire with her spoon halfway to her mouth, “Faith I cannot blame him for noticing you, what a vision you are, even in plain staff dress.”  
“Thank you Helgi, you are too kind.” She peered up the staircase at the light filtering down from the corridor windows, “It is time for me to go. I will tell you about the meeting if I hear anything of interest.”

The meeting itself consisted of agricultural concerns, the turning of the soil, the choice of crops to plant, when to plant them, where to plant them, how to share them. Eidra drifted behind the chairs, filling the chalices, being quiet, unobtrusive. One of the town elders, a short, well-fed man with dark hair and piercing eyes, dressed in silks and velvet, would smile at her every time she approached him. She had politely returned the smile and moved on, glad to reach Loki who held her gaze a moment more than was proper, making her blush.  
When the meeting turned informal, the guests filtered into the Great Hall where the food was laid out on the long table. Eidra refilled her ewer and returned to the hall, making rounds yet again. She found Loki talking to the man who had been smiling at her all evening and she curtsied as she filled his chalice.   
“You have such lovely women here at court.” The man remarked to Loki as he eyed Eidra, “I implore you, introduce me to this absolute vision would you?”  
She cringed inwardly. The man had a simpering condescending way about him. His speech was rapid fire, nervous, his gaze nearly obscene.  
“This is Kivas of Rialo.” Loki's tone was clipped and she felt mortified for him that he had been forced to acknowledge her, a servant, among the visiting dignitaries.  
Kivas took her free hand and bussed it. She heard the creak of leather as Loki shifted his weight. She dared not look at him,  
“And what is your name, my delicate flower?”  
“Eidra,” She murmured, eyes downcast as she pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.  
“You are Alfari?” He raised his hand to point at her.  
“Yes, Milord.”  
“Enchanting!” Kivas turned to Loki then back to her, “And how old be you?”  
“I have seen twenty-one winters.”  
Kivas clapped his hands and crooked his finger at her, “I have need of more servants in my household, I must procure you, come with me, my dear.”  
He bowed to Loki. “If you will excuse me, Milord.”  
Kivas started to drift into the crowd and Eidra cast a frightened glance at Loki who held up his hand. “She is my personal servant.”  
Kivas whirled around on the balls of his feet, “Then we must barter, every man has his price.”  
“She is not for trade.” Loki kept his hands to his side, fingernails digging into his palms.

Thor had drained his third chalice and was looking for another wine steward even if it be his brother's wench when he heard Loki a few feet distant, talking to the town elder from Rialo and he edged in closer to hear them.  
“A dozen heifers, all prize stock. Come now, you could swell the palace holdings.”  
Loki shook his head, “I repeat, she is my personal..”  
“Brother,” Thor interrupted him, “Hear him out at least.”  
Loki's stare was pure malice as he turned to Thor.  
“Two dozen heifers!”  
“Done!” Thor shouted as he reached for Kivas's hand but Loki knocked Thor's arm aside with a growl.   
“She is not for sale, I tell you, she is mine!”  
Thor glared at him, “She was mine first, and I say it is a fair trade.”  
“You gave her up!”  
Thor pushed Loki with a fist to the chest, “And you tricked me!”  
Loki resisted, shoving against him, “You were busy being arrogant! I took advantage of it and won the contest fairly!”  
People had stopped their conversation and were starting to stare at them. Kivas put his hands up and began to back away, “I am so sorry, I did not mean to create a problem.”  
“You challenged me because you knew I would accept it,” Loki roared, “Only you did not think you would lose!”  
“Milord,” Eidra whispered and he whirled around, startling her.  
“What!”  
“Forgive me, but you are drawing a crowd. Kivas has retreated.”  
He stared at her, momentarily stunned, then looked back to Thor who was watching them. Around the room, everyone had fallen silent. Loki grabbed Eidra by the arm then, dragging her through the crowd to the large arched windows looking out over the city.  
“Are you mad, speaking to me like that?” He hissed, leaning close to her, “In front of my oaf of a brother?”   
She was shivering now. “I only meant to help you. I did not want him to make a fool of you in front of the guests.”  
“Eidra, you chided me. I must deal with you severely in front of him or he shall take me to task.”  
Eidra nodded, “Yell at me.”  
“What?”  
Louder, “Yell at me!”  
Loki hesitated. She could see the angry tears in his eyes.  
“Wench!” he shouted, “How dare you speak out of turn! Return to the kitchen at once, I will personally see to it that you be made to answer for your impertinence!” A tear escaped to lay on his cheek as he pointed her from the room, “Go!”  
She bowed, fleeing through the crowd, leaving him to stand there. He scanned the room where he saw Odin and Thor, their heads bent together, talking and he started the way Eidra had gone. He'd only taken a few steps, however, when he was halted by Thor's booming voice, “Loki!”  
Thor was waving him over to where they stood. He set his jaw and made his way to them.  
Odin nodded to Thor and with a glare, he blended into the crowd though not far enough away that he could not interject if needed.  
Odin put a hand on Loki's shoulder, “My son, your servant girl is a bit out of hand, let me replace her with a houseboy.”  
“I already have a houseboy, I do not need another.”  
“Then what need have you of her?”  
Loki, still agitated at the commotion with Thor, was quickly becoming rattled, “She already knows my routine,”  
Odin squeezed his shoulder, “You must not become so attached to one servant, others can be taught her chores.”  
“And what of your manservant?” Loki snapped, “You have had him since I was in swaddling clothes.”  
Odin shook his head, “He is a man, a woman in a man's household has the potential to lead him astray.”  
Loki gave a wry smile, “And this, you think, shall be my fate?”  
Odin was silent but Thor was there to answer.“It has already. You have taught her to ride, I hear tell you now prefer her company in the saddle to your own brother! You buy her trinkets, fine cloth with which to fashion dresses that she can scarce wear but in your chambers, and a fine silk robe you had made for her as I recall.”  
Loki was trembling with anger. He had all he could do not to drive his fist into his brother's upturned nose but he wanted to keep Father unaware at how close to the bone Thor was striking.  
“Gifts for doing her job well, I told you that before. I pity your own staff, are you as hard upon them?”  
“Only as hard as you have been in the past. They are servants, they are given room and board and that should be sufficient.” Thor was bristling now and Loki meant to continue,  
“What more are they given? Tell me about your own handmaids, dear brother. Do they help you dress, draw your bath? Surely you do not make Sif do all the work? I seem to recall a night in recent memory where you invited me to join you in greeting a new chamber maid. Do you recall that? It was similar in kind to when you asked me to share mine own with you.”  
“Loki! You say far too much than is proper.”  
He smirked. He had found something to fluster the golden boy. He looked around the room. “Why? Is Sif walking about? Are you concerned she might take you to task if she hears me?”  
Thor lunged at his brother, stopped only inches from him when Odin held his hand to Thor's chest.  
“Loki, apologize for your slights.”  
Loki's mouth hung open. “Slights? He is obsessed with my household's doings, accuses me of having been overindulgent with my handmaid and yet I have slighted him?”  
“He has not inferred any indiscretions on your part. You, however, have accused him of dalliances. Now apologize.”  
Loki stiffened, bowed. “Forgive me, brother. I did not mean to offend.” He felt as if he would purge before them both.  
“Now think hard upon a new servant.”  
“Yes, Father.”  
Loki bowed again, disappearing through the throng of guests until he was out into the corridor, sweat beading his face as he made his way to his chambers.

Eidra was sitting on her cot, hands in her lap when Loki burst into the room. He stood there for a moment, trying to catch his breath.   
“Father wishes me to replace you.”  
She nodded, her eyes upon her lap, “I told you I did not wish to serve at the banquet this time. I begged you to let me help in the kitchens instead. Each time Lord Thor spies me, he takes me to task for the smallest things.”  
“I despise leaving you alone in our chambers when so many strangers roam the halls..”  
Eidra stared up at him, “I have spent many days and nights alone in our chambers with no ill effect! Do you wish to defy him so heartily that you would parade me before his nose at the least chance?”  
Loki leaned over her, “You accuse me of pride when I only wish to have you near me? Do you not know your smile lifts my heart, calms my soul when I am made to act the diplomat for my father, to suffer these functions for the kingdom? Yet you believe I only live to goad the oaf to action.”  
Eidra gazed at the floor, “I do not....”  
“He thinks that you are out of hand and should be replaced with a houseboy. What say you to that!” he gripped the back of his chair as if he wished to lift it up and heave it over the balcony railing.  
“What would you have me say?”   
Loki strode up to her, “Tell me no. You were quite able to speak out in the Great hall!”   
He knelt to the floor before her, his hands upon her knees.   
“Beg me to let you stay. Harden my heart to my father's demand!” he dropped his head to her lap, “Tell me you love me!”   
She felt his body spasm and her heart broke in two. He was crying, sobbing, tears wetting the linen skirt of her dress, his arms wrapped around her waist, his cheek pressed to the swell of her belly. She stroked his hair, rubbed his back.   
“I do so love you, my prince. Think not upon them, they can only hope to have what we have.” His hand caressed her stomach as he planted kiss after kiss upon it, murmuring words to their unborn child through his tears and she folded herself forward, holding him.  
“You are here with me now, banish all the world, this portion be ours.”  
She pushed him gently from her and led him to the bed where she undressed him, cooing softly, drying his tears with her touch, her smile. When finally she straddled his hips, taking him inside her in one satin motion, filling her completely, she felt her own tears wet her face. He wiped them away with his hands, trailing them down her throat to the swell of her breasts, her waist, her hips where he held her tight as he began to move up into her. She leaned forward over him, feeling the intrusion her belly was starting to create, kissed him, felt his hands tangle into her hair, his passion overtaking him swiftly then as he murmured beside her ear, “I am yours, Eidra.”and arched up from the bed with his release, holding her to him until she dropped to his side and they lay there, wrapped in each others arms.  
He spoke to her of contentment, of the strength of his conviction, his love as he cradled her, his hands never leaving her body, craving the touch of her skin, sleep all that much sweeter with her heartbeat as his lullaby.


	17. 17

Thus it came to pass a week later that Thor showed up at Loki's door one evening.   
“If you will not venture out, I shall have to come to you, brother.”  
Eidra had been sitting in her chair knitting, chatting with Loki. Helgi had taught her to knit some weeks past when she had expressed an interest in it while watching Helgi one night beside the kitchen fire. Eidra quickly set her needles down, rose and walked to Thor, holding out her arms as he draped his cloak over them. While he straightened his tunic, she bowed to him, gliding to the chair and artfully draping the cloak over the backrest hiding her name carved there.  
“You are dismissed for the evening,” Thor waved at her while he sat in her chair. Loki was nearly out of his seat when she shook her head, her eyes wide, sliding to Thor. As she closed the door behind her, she reasoned to herself, what was a loss of one night to placate the oaf.  
However, when Thor began to make his visits a near nightly ritual complete with wine or mead of some form, she started leaving Loki's chambers soon after evening meal despite his protests. She wondered if, at one point, Sif would come looking for Thor or if he even told her where he went each night. She tried to console Loki, explaining that his patience was going a long way towards smoothing over relations with his brother and in the end he had grudgingly agreed.   
Even their time alone was not entirely safe. One evening, after having made love, she had left their bed for a cloth to clean up with and was standing in the bathing room when she heard Thor's voice; he sounded drunk. She peeked around the edge of the door frame to see Thor standing by the bed while Loki yanked the coverlet up, trying his best to hide her discarded robe in the bed beside him.  
“Come brother,” was all Thor had to say to send Loki into a spasm of laughter, and even Eidra had to jam her finger in her mouth to keep from joining him.  
“Why do you laugh at me? I wish to ply you with mead and lovely women tonight and you do naught but laugh.”   
Thor knelt on the bed, grabbing handfuls of the coverlet, trying to drag it away from him. They see-sawed to and fro until Loki shoved him over with one hand. Thor landed across his legs and the fight was on. They wrestled for a moment until Thor managed to seize the upper hand, straddling him, half uncovered across the waist, pinning his hands to the bed.   
“Get off me you great oaf!” Loki cried, “You are crushing me!” To which Thor responded by bouncing up and down atop him. She could see Loki getting madder with each rebound.   
“You will luh..oosen the ropes and flatten the dow...uhn.”  
“Then yield to me brother,” another bounce taking the breath from him, “Yield.”  
Loki was finally in a rage, “I swear I will petrify you again!”  
Thor slid Loki's arms above his head clasping his wrists both with one large hand and clapping the other over Loki's mouth, “Not without that silver tongue of yours, you won't. Now yield.”  
His final bounce was his undoing as Loki was able to get his right leg beneath him and with a shove shifted Thor's balance enough to throw him, unseating his hand from his lips as he did so.  
“Stein til stein for alltid en så sier jeg dette spell er gjort!” Loki roared as Thor tumbled from the bed to the floor with a loud thud and remained there.   
“Damn you, Loki!”  
But Loki was already on his feet, donning his robe as he stood beside the bed.  
“The next time I shall include a spell to silence your tongue.”  
“Release me!” Thor cried but Loki bent down and took hold of one of Thor's feet.  
“What in Hel are you doing?”  
Loki leaned backward and started to drag Thor toward the door.  
“Loki, I know what you are thinking, do not do it.”  
He swung the door open, returned to Thor and dragged him into the corridor.  
“Loki!” Thor shouted as Loki slammed the door shut and strode to the bath room where Eidra stood doubled over with laughter.   
“It is not funny, I shall need the coverlet laundered, the bed shall need to be remade, I must wash up.”  
“Oh Loki,” she whispered, “Calm yourself, he was having fun.”  
“We were having a fine time before he arrived.”  
She sidled up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, “And we will have a fine time when he leaves.”  
From out in the corridor they heard him, “Please brother, I feel sick.”  
“Go rescue the brute, send him to his rooms and come to bed. I shall stay here and hide until he leaves.”  
He kissed her, shook his head and walked out into the bedroom where she heard his voice, “Calm down you fool, it shall be but a moment.”

While the siege that was Thor continued, Eidra would spend her nights in the kitchen knitting, helping with the laundry, cooking, even playing games with Silas who, at twelve seasons, was very nearly a man and was now entirely devoted to Eidra, dependent upon her to fill the sibling void left by his moody withdrawn older brother. In particular, Eidra loved to tease him, though in good nature.  
“Silas,” She remarked one night as they sat at the kitchen table playing hnefatafl, “You spend your evenings with your elders, women to boot. Do you not ever gather with the other boys and girls in the palace?”  
Silas looked downcast, “Does Milady wish me to seek out proper company?”  
Eidra shook her finger at him, “Do not call me milady for I am no such thing and if you move a foot from that bench I shall warm your bottom for you.”  
Silas smiled, relieved. “The boys run mostly with my brother and thus are often in trouble. I would not wish to anger Lord Loki by imitating them in such a manner. The girls, they are just....girls.” A shadow crossed his face.  
“Is there a fair maid caught your attention?” Eidra pondered the game board.  
Silas did not answer right away. Finally, with a faraway look in his eyes, he said, “There is a fair maid, though not as fair as you,” he reddened at his own confession, “Your move Eidra.”  
She picked up her white stone and moved it, “Who is she? Does she work in the palace or is she in the fields?”  
Silas reddened further, “She works in the field with Malek's girl, Erwen.”  
Eidra sat back, astonished. “Malek courts a girl?”  
“Yes,” Silas made a face, “If you could call call her that. Such a sullen dark-haired scarecrow of a girl is she.”  
Eidra nodded, “Seems fitting for the likes of him.”  
“Indeed it does.” Silas agreed.  
“So what is the name of your intended?”  
“Ingrid,” Silas was now fairly scarlet. “She is the same age as me.”  
Eidra put her stone on the board, “Your move. What color hair does she have?”  
Silas smiled, “Dark red, and green eyes.”  
Eidra could see Helgi grinning from the corner of her eye, “She sounds lovely. Have you talked to her?”  
“Oh no, Eidra, I could not.”  
Eidra reached over and put her hand on Silas's, “We will figure out a way to get her to notice you....and I think that's the game..”   
Silas looked down at the board, “That be two in a row. You are too good for me. Another game?”  
Eidra shook her head, “I heard Thor leave a short time ago. I am getting tired, Loki is probably already asleep. Thor tires everyone out.” She picked up the game, put the stones in their pouch. “We will play again tomorrow night.”

Loki was indeed asleep and so she climbed into her cot after making sure the fire was banked. The air was still cold but the weather was not as harsh as it had been. She burrowed further under the coverlet, draping her arm over her belly, and fell asleep thinking of baby names.

The next evening, Eidra had just gotten the game board out to wait for Silas who was finishing chores, when Loki came bounding down the stairs.  
“Come with me.” He took Eidra's hand, pulling her up from the table.   
“Wait, what is going on?” Eidra followed him up the staircase.  
“You are going to challenge the oaf to a game of hnefatafl. He does not believe that you can beat him.”  
They were practically running down the corridor when she yanked at his hand, skidding to a halt.  
“Have you been drinking?” she whispered.  
“I have had nothing tonight. Come, I wish to see the oaf eat his words.”   
They started off again, his grip firm on her hand.  
“I do not wish to see the oaf at all.”  
Loki stopped in his tracks, “It would be all that much sweeter to make him see you are no ignorant servant girl.”  
“You do not think this would make me more dangerous in his eyes?”  
Loki laughed, started walking again, “You are hardly dangerous to the likes of him. Such foolish talk, Eidra.”  
She trotted along beside him, “Well I cannot match his strength but his intellect is just as precious to him. If I make him feel like an oaf, might he find more reason to see me gone?”  
Loki paused with his hand on the door, “I challenged him, I cannot back down.”  
She nodded, “I will throw the game to him. I would prefer to please him.”  
Loki held the door handle firm but leaned over, put a hand behind her head and pulled her to him in a kiss that stole her breath. “A wise woman you are.”   
When he swung the door open, Thor was sitting cross legged in front of the fire.   
“Oaf, you are in my spot” was all she could think to herself. She passed in front of the fire and seated herself opposite him.  
“Woman, Loki has said that you are an excellent hnefatafl player, I say that he is simply a poor player,” Thor waved to the board set out before him. “And to that end, I shall beat you as well.”  
She could smell the mead on his breath and wondered how far she dared to go. She glanced up at Loki, sitting in his chair beside her but he was looking at Thor.  
“Your move first, Milord.”  
Thor smiled at Loki, picked up his black stone and the game began.  
They seemed pretty evenly matched as he worked his way around the board.   
“Loki, she has indeed shown you up, she is matching me so far.”  
“She will overtake you if you become too confident,” Loki tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair.  
“I am far from worried,” Thor said with a defiant smirk, “She has simply played against you.”  
Eidra bristled. Thor deigned to address her, instead acting as if she were not there. She felt Loki nudge her with his foot and she stole a look to him as Thor was staring at the board.   
“Beat him” he mouthed.   
Eidra sighed, watched Thor's move, planning a couple moves ahead of him. She knew she could beat him, that was not in question. Did she want to?   
“I have always been better at games than you, brother, and I always will.”  
Yes she did.  
She made her next move, felt his foot nudge her again and she smiled; he was able to see what she was doing. She held up a hand then, “I propose a bet for the outcome.”   
She watched Thor's face darken.  
“What have you to bet? Your pretty robe, your little loom?” he paused, “Perhaps your attention for the evening?”  
Eidra blanched. If she was to lose, everything would be lost. She cursed her tongue.  
“You have no need of her attention,” Loki spoke up, “Lady Sif is more than you can handle.”  
Thor glared at Loki, “Then what has she to bet?”  
Eidra thought hard and fast, “I propose that if I win, you must apologize to Milord.”  
“Apologize for what?” Thor laughed, “I have no need to apologize.”  
“You do! You make him feel small, you insult him, upbraid him in front of his servant.”  
Thor slammed his hand on the hard marble floor, “You wench! Were it up to me, I would cut out your tongue!”  
Eidra flinched but did not back down, “Is it a bet?”  
Thor sat back, eyes narrowed. “And if I win?”  
Her eyes darted to Loki, “Then I shall give up my position to Silas.”  
Thor thought for a moment, grinned, “It is a bet.”   
He reached out his hand and she took it in a strong shake.  
Thor concentrated on the board as Loki locked eyes with Eidra.  
He made one move, she countered it, sat back working her fingers together, made a move, waited for him, for the set up.  
His next move was his last as she closed in upon him, “I believe that is the game, Milord.”  
His head swung slowly upward until he was staring at her. She'd never been more frightened in her life, not even when Loki had set upon her but she bit her lip hard.“We had a bet, did we not?”  
Thor stood abruptly, his hands working into fists. “Brother, I apologize for my actions.”  
“You do not sound sincere.” Eidra replied, still sitting on the floor.   
“You bitch!” he roared, “You tricked me. You wished to humiliate me in front of my brother!”  
“Thor, she played fairly. You must learn to lose as graciously as you win.” Loki stood from his chair grabbing Thor's arm as he loomed over her.  
She knew it was time to placate him yet again. She bent over, her head on her hands, “Forgive me, Milord. I misspoke. I only live to serve Lord Loki.”  
Thor wrenched from Loki's grasp. “I grow tired of this,” he growled, “Good evening, brother. We ride in the morning?”  
Loki nodded. With a backward glance at Eidra, Thor strode from the room, slamming the door behind him.  
Eidra watched Loki, detecting a slight tremble as he stood there staring at the door, then he looked down at her.  
“Do you want him to strike you? Truly?” He ran his fingers through his hair, eyes cast to the ceiling.   
“I did not want him to hurt your feelings any longer, it breaks my heart to see him treat you so.”  
Loki knelt before her on one knee, “So to buy an apology, you were willing to bet your position? Do not gamble like that again. Were he to win, it would have killed me.”  
She put a hand to his face, “I knew I was going to win. I would not leave your side.”  
He kissed her forehead, “What shall I do with you, Eidra?”

 

Sif shifted her gaze to Thor's face. His head was tilted to the backrest of the chair, eyes closed, lips parted in ecstasy, yet his brow was furrowed and she was frustrated. Even at such a time as this, his mind was still elsewhere.   
She lifted her head, drew him from her mouth, giving him a gentle squeeze, “I feel, though your rod be stiff, your mind be elsewhere.”  
Thor shifted his position, looked down at Sif, “Woman, your timing is ill met.”   
He entangled his fingers in her hair, pushing her toward his groin again but she shrugged him off though she kept stroking him slowly.   
“How can the crown prince enjoy himself fully when his mind is so clouded?”  
Thor leaned forward in the chair, his long blond locks obscuring the light from the fireplace as he took her chin in his hand, “What do you know of my mind?”  
“What I see with my eyes, hear with my ears.”  
She knew how to keep him pliant, satisfied. She drew her tongue along his length, smiled as he shuddered.  
“If your absence these past days has been any indication, you seek another's attention.”  
Thor grunted, “It is of no concern to you,” but she squeezed him again, this time a bit tighter and he yelped, “Gods! Take care, woman!”  
“It is of concern to me whether my gracious Lord is unencumbered by dark thoughts.” Sif had stopped stroking him now, merely holding his manhood, waiting.  
Thor stared into the firelight, seeming to weigh his words, “I grow weary of waiting for my brother to tire of the servant wench.”  
Sif stood from her position at his feet and straddled his lap, “Tell me, does it matter who Loki spends his nights with?”  
Thor bristled at her nonchalance, “To the distraction of all else? Yes.”   
He made to shove her from his lap but she wrapped her arms about his neck.  
“You miss the brother who would follow you about, who would remain at your side though he often be on the receiving end of your caustic humor.”  
She felt his body tense, “Sif,”  
“You miss the one person who loved you because he wanted to, not because he must.”  
Thor looked up into her eyes, “What of you? Do you love me because you must?”  
Sif caught his mouth in a slow kiss, “Of course I must. Who can resist the warrior prince?”  
“But,” Thor leaned back, “Would you love me were you not promised to me?”  
“I always have,” She smiled.  
He reached up to cup her breasts, kneading them, “Do I have reason to worry?”  
Sif tilted her head, “About myself, Milord?”  
He frowned, “About my brother? About the maidservant? Do you indeed believe he will lose interest in her?”  
Sif thought of Loki's endless crude remarks, the insults he would often deliver at her expense, had for many seasons since they were children.  
“He must. Otherwise, what be the alternative? Will he make her Princess of the chamber pots?” she giggled, “Perhaps they would have a whole family of little manservants and handmaids.”  
Thor grimaced, “It is unwise to talk about serious dealings in such a manner.”  
“But I merely meant it in jest. His bed will soon turn cold again and you will have him all to yourself.” She leaned into him, began to nip at his neck, watching the seeds of doubt that had already been planted begin to germinate in his gaze as he threw her to the floor covering her body with his in a haze of lust, her smile one of pure revenge as she looked to the dark ceiling far above.

Soon after Thor's resounding defeat, his visits became far less frequent until they stopped altogether and one evening Loki told Eidra to stay with him after the evening meal. On one hand, she was delighted, on the other she was sad. She had enjoyed her time with Helgi, Silas and the others, so it was with trepidation born out of pure love of the friends she had made during her time here that, one morning as they lay in bed, she asked if Silas could join them one night for games.  
“The houseboy? Will you soon have the entire staff in our bedroom?”  
“Oh Loki, he is just a boy. A good boy at that, with a good heart. He has no man to look up to save his whelp of a brother, Malek.”  
Loki traced circles on the swell of her belly, smiling as he was rewarded with the merest of movement. “An' we have gained our privacy back, you would bring another in.”  
She wrapped a strand of his raven black hair around her fingers, “We will still have our time together.”  
He sighed then and she knew she had been given permission.

When that next afternoon, Eidra took Silas aside and told him to come to Loki's chambers that evening, he was under the assumption that it meant he was to have work. When she told him he had been invited to share their company, he sat down hard on the kitchen bench.  
“With Lord Loki? Odin's beard, what has happened that he should want the company of a lowly houseboy?”  
Eidra patted Silas's hand, “I requested that you join us, I will have buttermilk and apples and honey. We will play games. You may test your skill at hnefatafl, and see if you surpass him.”  
Silas looked about to fall from the bench, “But what if I win?”  
Eidra smiled, “Bet him something good, he will honor the bet.”  
“Oh I have nothing to bet.”   
Helgi tapped Eidra on the behind, “Do not tease the boy, you will scare him to death.”  
Eidra sat beside him, throwing her arm around his shoulders. “It will be fun. Will you come?”  
Silas shrugged, “As you wish, Eidra.”

 

“...and he is enamored of a girl named Ingrid.” Eidra put her head back against Loki's shoulder, enjoying the warmth of the water, his hands on her belly as she sat between his legs in the bath.  
“Foolish boy, I should warn him that women are nothing but trouble.”  
She pinched his thigh, “Do not warn him off of his first romance.”  
He leaned over and nipped the back of her neck, “I would only spare him the agony that comes with love.”  
“Agony, my prince, I will show you agony.” She proceeded to turn around, catching his mouth in a kiss, her teeth tugging at his bottom lip, tongue flicking his tip to tip, straddling his lap. He was full hard when she broke the kiss, pushed from him and swam to the stone steps.   
“That, my prince, is agony.” She smiled as she walked up the steps to fetch her towel.  
“Damn you, woman,” he muttered.

By the time he was able to leave the bath and towel off, Silas had arrived and he and Eidra were sitting in front of the fire with a tray between them upon which sat a small jug, mugs, apples and a pot of honey. Eidra waggled her fingers at Loki and he gave her a sly grin as he lowered himself to the floor beside her. She had wondered how he would act before Silas and was pleasantly surprised when he spoke up,   
“So, my love, this is the boy who would challenge me for your attention?” he smiled at Silas. “How answer you, boy?”  
“Nay, Milord, I would not challenge you for all the gold in the kingdom.” Silas seemed to shrink into himself.  
“Not for all the gold, but for the hand of my maiden.” Loki picked up the knife from the tray and Silas darted on his knees behind Eidra.  
Loki raised an eyebrow and handed the knife to Eidra, “Perhaps you should do the honors. The boy thinks I aim to stick him.”  
She eyed Loki, “Silas, come return to your place. I only indulge in a bit of good-natured ribbing with you. Be not afraid of me.”  
Silas eased back to his place beside Eidra, “I will try, Milord.”  
“Must so much effort be put into such an easy thing?” Loki handed Eidra an apple then began to pour the buttermilk, “What troubles you, Silas?”  
She could tell Silas was hesitant and she nudged him, “Speak, Silas, he gives you the chance to do so.”  
Silas swallowed hard, scratched his short dark red hair, “It is only...You are a changed man, Milord.”  
Loki sat up straighter, “How say you?”  
“You are, forgive me, Milord, kinder, more even tempered. Eidra has made you happy, I think.” Silas blushed and glanced at Eidra, waiting to be chided for his words.  
Instead, Loki chuckled, “She has indeed, the love of a good woman works wonders, a good woman, mind you. I hear tell you have an interest towards a girl.”  
“Yes, Milord, she is a field worker.” Silas took the slices of apple Eidra held out to him.  
“Is she also a good woman?” Loki dipped an apple slice in honey, reached over and fed it to Eidra.  
“I do not know, I have never spoken to her.”  
Loki nodded, “You must grab the chance when you can. Do not hesitate lest it pass you by because love is as precious as time.”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
“Eidra,” Loki waved to her, “take out the game board, let me test the boy's skill in strategy, perhaps he would make a better soldier.”

 

They played until late into the night, Silas winning a number of games against them both. While Loki would play, Eidra would sit and knit, content, feeling the baby slide across her abdomen. She would look at Loki then who would grin and she was sure that if she could only live in these moments, life would be ever sweet.  
When Silas finally bid them goodnight that evening, he was able to joke lightly with Loki, his fear having abated as the night wore on. They lay in bed later, Loki curled to her, his hand rubbing her back in slow, soothing strokes.   
“Soon I will not be able to venture out from our chambers for I will be too big to go unnoticed. Therefore I ask a favor of you.”  
Loki paused, his hand between her shoulderblades. “What is it?”  
“The planting will be next week. I would..”  
“No,”  
Eidra sat up and turned to him, “You do not give me a chance, I would be with Helgi and Silas and Artra, even Artra is going to be there. I will stay with them. Please may I go as well?”  
Loki sat up beside her, “You are already showing and you should not be bending all the time. I have been listening to Helgi caution you. What have you reason to go out into those fields for in the first place?”  
“I shall wear my dress high, I am still able to hide my girth. I want to be with all the other servants and workers. I wish to help plant the fields so I may feel I have had a hand in the harvest. Though I also confess I have another motive,” she pushed him back to the bed, laying on his shoulder, gazing up into his eyes. “I wish to help Silas get the attention of that girl, Ingrid.”  
“Are you after playing matchmaker?” His arms encircled her.  
“I am, I think. Please, Helgi will watch over me, I promise I will be careful,” she kissed the line of his jaw, “I will not stay overlong, I simply wish to see if I cannot get Ingrid to talk to Silas.”  
Loki shook his head, “I will allow you the morning, but I wish you to be back to our chambers by midday.”   
She hugged him tight as he continued, “And you must stay with Helgi, ken?”  
“Yes my love,” She was grinning from ear to ear, “Thank you.”  
“Mmmm, shall I live to regret it?”  
Eidra giggled, whispered in his ear as her hand stole beneath the covers.  
“Ah, I gather I shall not.”


	18. 18

She plucked at her dress to pull it away from her body, acutely aware that Loki was right, she was showing a bit more than she'd thought. She followed Helgi to the edge of the field where carts were lined up loaded with farm implements, spades, hoes, pouches of seed. It was already warming up, she had taken her slippers off to feel the warm soil beneath her feet. She shivered and the baby kicked.  
“I think she shall be a runner.” She whispered to Helgi as they made for the wagons.  
“And you still insist it shall be a girl?”  
“I think so. He claims otherwise,” she scanned the field. “Where is Silas?”  
Helgi joined her, “I do not know.”  
“Ingrid!” She heard the name called out, turned to see a pretty girl run past. She was short, with long dark red hair done up in a braid and jade green eyes.   
“There she is,” Eidra poked Helgi, “Is she not a beauty?”  
Helgi looked the way the girl had gone, “Yes she is. Now come, lets start. Tell me if it is too much for you and I will bring you back to the palace.”  
Eidra rolled her eyes, “I will be fine.”  
She spied Ingrid walking past her again beside a sullen looking, dark haired woman, beautiful but painfully thin, her dress hanging on her frame, her heavy lidded eyes making her seem indifferent, withdrawn. She was everything Silas had said about Malek's girl and sure enough far down the field, they met up with Malek who was standing there, pouch in hand yelling at Silas. She made to start for him but Helgi put her hand on her arm.   
“Do not interfere. Silas will take care of himself.”  
Silas strode off, a dark frown on his face and Eidra thought to call him over. Helgi, however, pulled her to the nearest wagon, grabbing a pouch to sling over her shoulder. Eidra took it from her and turned to call to Silas but he had disappeared.  
She followed Helgi along one row for a while, Helgi making the furrow, she dropping the seed as they chatted, being careful to stay apart from some of the other workers.  
“I have finished with one blanket, Helgi. I am so proud of myself. I wish to make another one in his standards to wrap the baby in but I must see the weavers. I will ask them to dye some skeins gold and green.”  
Helgi stood upright wiping the sweat from her brow, drying her hands with her apron. “I have sewn two dressing gowns. I would like to sew a matching one for you. It would look so beautiful, you laying abed with the baby in the same garments. I have had to sew them late in the evening when everyone is asleep so as not to garner too many questions.”  
“I cannot wait to wear them,” she reached into her pouch and felt that it was nearly empty, “I will go back to the wagon for another pouch, you rest.”  
Helgi nodded, waved her on as she bent forward to ease her aching back.

Eidra tossed her empty pouch onto the bed of the nearest wagon and was reaching for another among the sacks stacked along the slatted sides when angry voices stopped her and she stood still, listening.  
“Go wench, this is none of your concern!” It was Malek.  
She heard another voice, a female, “Hang yourself then, I have work to do, miserable whoreson!”  
The fast footsteps behind the wagon had her hauling herself up into it, crouching beside the bags of seed, her back protesting painfully at the cramped position. She peered between the slats to see Erwen striding through the grass behind the line of wagons. She shook her head and was about to step down when an unfamiliar voice came to her.  
“The feast for the planting is tonight. Are you certain?”   
“I am sure of it. The kingdom will be well rid of his evil.”  
This voice, however, she was well acquainted with. She held her breath, listening.  
“But you will be taken as well, how do you expect to kill him and escape without harm? The royal guards are everywhere in the palace.”  
“Hush, Vanir, low tones,” Malek scolded him and here his own voice dropped to barely a whisper so that she had to strain to hear, “The royals use a short corridor to present themselves at the far end of the Throne room. They walk through it unattended. It is there I will set upon him and stab him with my dagger. I will be far away before they discover his body.”  
Eidra felt as if she had been struck with fever. She began to sweat, shivering as if she were standing in snow.   
“And what if they catch you? They will miss him but a moment or two, time will be short.”  
“Then I die a martyr. He has always been a cruel master, he thinks nothing of killing.”  
Eidra thought of the night Loki had rescued her from the sentry, and she closed her eyes.  
“He is as arrogant as the crown prince..”  
She had to restrain herself from popping up in the wagon and cutting out his tongue with a spade at daring to compare Loki with his brother.  
“He cleaves unto that servant girl, Eidra and then he beats the other servants for the slightest offense. He is a selfish, self-righteous hypocrite and the kingdom will be a better place for his absence.”  
She looked out across the field where Helgi stood, leaning on the hoe and prayed that she would stay there. She was startled then by a flurry of movement behind the wagon, and the voices started again.  
“I have honed this blade for weeks, waiting for the chance to execute my plan. I will have a horse ready for me at the outskirts of the city. From there I will ride into the countryside and perhaps on to Alfheim until they have ceased to look for me.” The sound of a blade sliding into its sheath made her heart race.   
“Provided you make it to the outskirts of the city. Who is to say you will even succeed in killing him. He is a powerful man. I have seen his displays with mine own eyes.”  
“And I have felt them.” Malek's voice was almost a growl now. “I must follow my heart and it says that this is the right thing to do. Now come, no more talk, we are surely missed.”   
Eidra shrank down into the wagon, suddenly sure she was going to be found. She looked out into the field before her again and saw both men walk past the ends of the wagon, heading straight out across the furrows. All Malek would have had to do would be to turn and he would be looking right at her. Mercifully, he kept walking. After a short time, she stretched herself out and dropped from the wagon. She had to tell Helgi, she had to warn Loki.  
She searched the fields for a quite a while, panic gripping her. She had been told to stay with Helgi and now she had lost her. She returned to the line of wagons, walking down the long row until she met up with Silas.  
“Have you seen Helgi? I need to find her.” Eidra was gasping for breath, having nearly trotted all the way down the line of wagons.  
“I saw her at the end of the field, she was looking for you. Is everything alright?” he bent low and whispered, “Is it the baby?”  
She shook her head, “No, I will head to the end of the field. If you see her, tell her I must talk to her.”  
Silas nodded vigorously and, seized by the sudden urge to hug him, she did so before she resumed her path down the wagon line.  
It was past midday and large black clouds had begun to gather along the horizon when she found Helgi who grabbed her shoulders and gave her a gentle shake. “Are you trying to scare me from a years growth? Where in Odin's silver beard have you been?”  
“I am sorry, I was distracted, oh so distracted, we have to find a quiet place to talk.”  
Helgi put her hand at Eidra's back and guided her away from the group of field workers gathered nearby. “Now whatever is it?”  
Eidra wrapped her arms around herself, “I had exchanged my pouch for a full one when I heard voices behind the wagon I was at so I climbed into the wagon and peeked through the slats. It was Malek. I heard him talking to someone named Vanir. Malek is going to try to kill Loki tonight at the celebration feast!”  
“Oh you must have heard wrong. He is hot headed and foolish but I cannot believe he is as foolish as that. It would mean certain death for him.” Helgi scanned the fields, searching for a glimpse of Malek.  
“I do not think he cares, he said he was willing to become a martyr. We must return to the palace so that I may warn Loki.”  
Helgi searched Eidra's face for a moment, “Are you certain of what you heard?”  
“Yes,” She turned to look towards the palace far distant. “Please, we must find Loki.”  
Thunder began to rumble in the distance as they started down the road towards the palace. The sky opened up before they were little better than halfway to the city walls. Helgi spied a rocky outcropping at the edge of the fields, hurrying Eidra towards it though she protested loudly.  
“We can walk in the rain, Helgi. It is growing late, please!”   
But Helgi held her ground, “We will be there in time, if you catch a chill from the rain, the baby shall suffer, now must I sit on you to keep you here?” She took off her shawl and wrapped it around Eidra's shoulders, hugging her to herself.   
Eidra, settled against her, murmured, “Malek said Loki is evil, selfish. Am I wrong to love him? Is it because I do that I do not see him as they claim he is, or do I choose not to?”  
Helgi rocked her as the rain came down in sheets, “Oh poppet, Loki was rash in his youth. He can be selfish at times, irrational, even mean-spirited. His fury in battle is legendary but if that be true then so is the Crown Prince guilty of such crimes. But now he is far gentler than before, his heart has softened. Why worry yourself with such matters, you said that he went so far as to beg forgiveness for his wrongs against you. Do you love him?”  
She nodded.  
“Does he love you?”  
Another nod.  
“Then that is enough.”

 

Loki stood at the railing of the balcony, peering out over the city to the fields far beyond as the rain soaked the landscape. Eidra should have returned to the palace by now, sitting warm and dry by the fireplace. He would have ridden out to find her had not Thor been sitting on the bed waiting for him to don his court dress.  
“What bothers you? It is but a little rain, a storm.”  
“My hand maid and the staff cook are helping with the planting today and I am concerned for their health.”  
He had long ago stopped caring what Thor said about his care of Eidra and his response now mattered little.  
“Yet again? They are but servants. Now stop mooning over the rain and dress. We must hasten to the Throne room or we will delay the entire ceremony.”  
Loki rolled his eyes but turned from the railing with one more protracted glance and headed for the wardrobe across the room.

 

By the time the storm had passed, taking the dark clouds with it, the sun was halved by the horizon. Though Eidra wished to run, she dared only a brisk walk. Helgi kept pace with her but it was still dusk when they burst through the stables heading swiftly across the arena and into the south courtyard.   
Eidra swung open the door to their chambers, calling out his name. Receiving no answer, she slammed the door shut and turned to Helgi.  
“They must be heading to the Throne room already, the Gods wept, Helgi! Hurry!”  
The corridors were silent, quite deserted in the south wing until they reached the central courtyard. Aesir and citizens alike were streaming into the Throne room. Eidra elbowed her way through the crowd, covering herself as best she could with Helgi's shawl. She was acutely aware of her dirty, disheveled appearance from a day in the field but that mattered little now. Turning to excuse herself from a hard jostle with someone, she lost contact with Helgi.   
Thor's voice boomed over the crowd and she cut through the throng towards the direction from whence it came. A line of royal guards separated Thor, Odin, with Queen Frigga on his arm, and Loki, from the crowd. Odin was already through the corridor leading to the Throne room. She heard the cheers rise as Odin appeared at the end of the hall.  
She had little choice if she was going to be successful and she rushed up to one of the guards, “I must speak to Lord Loki!”

 

Loki had adjusted his helmet for the fifth time as his brother kept playfully hitting it forward on his head when he heard Eidra's voice. He whirled about to see Eidra pleading with one of the Royal guards who was shaking his head, his pike held across his chest. Loki was almost too stunned to move, torn between letting the guard hold her at bay and removing his cloak to wrap around her, claiming she was soaked to the bone. That move would have thrown Thor into a lather. Instead he chose to put himself between her and Thor. He walked back to the guard, shoving him aside and grabbing Eidra by the shoulders, hating the way she flinched even now. He wanted to shout at her, tell her not to be afraid of him, angry that he was giving her reason to be.   
“Why are you here?” he growled, “Have you lost your mind?”  
“Milord,” She was seized by a violent trembling, “I have something I must tell you.”  
He heard Thor behind him, “What is the meaning of this intrusion, brother?”  
Loki pulled his cloak from his shoulders and wrapped it around her, Hel and be damned what he would say.   
“That is what I am endeavoring to find out.”  
His fingers pressed into the meat of her forearm, “Out with it, woman and I pray it be a good reason.”  
She waved him closer until he was side to side with her, “I was in the field today and overheard Malek speaking. He intends to kill you tonight.”   
Loki stood back, at once light headed, looking at Thor then back to Eidra. “Are you certain?”  
“Why does no one trust my ears? I am sure, Milord.” Eidra curled her hands into fists, so badly did she wish to take hold of his hand.  
“How?”  
She pointed to the drape-lined dimly lit hall through which Odin had just passed.  
“What is happening brother?” Thor had moved to stand beside him.  
He pulled Thor to his side and whispered in his ear. Thor stepped back, his cheeks red with fury.   
“How know you this wench speaks the truth?”  
“I trust my most loyal servant,” Loki moved Eidra to stand behind him.  
Thor stared at the red velvet curtains forming the entrance to the hall, “Then we will roust him out.”   
Thor moved to shout for the guards but Loki put his hand to Thor's lips.  
“Go through the hall as if nothing has happened. I will deal with him myself.”   
Thor's face changed into a mask of horror, “Madness, Loki. How do you know where this devil's son is?”  
Loki dropped his hand to his leg where the thigh holster lay. “I will know. Go, before he suspects something is wrong.”  
“Yell to me brother if you have need of my assistance. I will come running,,” Thor clapped him on the shoulder and Loki returned the gesture.  
He turned to Eidra who was shaking her head, looking panic-stricken at the hall where Thor had disappeared behind the high red drape. It was too dangerous to reassure her with the guards, people watching them. He touched the red velvet as he heard the cheers arise for the Crown Prince. With one more glance backward, he saw that Helgi had reached Eidra and was trying to pull her back into the crowd. He drew aside the drape and stepped inside the hall.   
The drapes muffled the sounds of the palace. He stood staring down the hallway where it turned sharply right and led into the Throne Room. Nothing moved, the torches along the wall sputtered, casting a dim, fluctuating glow. Loki waved his hand before him,“Avslør dine fiender til meg.”  
A faint green glow, almost too dim to notice, appeared about halfway down the hall on his right. He started to walk, slow, his dagger already in hand, breath quick with excitement, listening to the people outside in the throne room as he drew closer to the faint light.  
He caught the movement of the drapes as he passed by, heard the grunt as Malek stepped out of the shadows with his knife raised. The downward swing of the blade sliced through thin air as Loki stepped aside, pivoted, drove his hand across his chest and into Malek's wrist, breaking his grip on the knife. It clattered to the floor as Loki came across with his right hand, blade tucked against his forearm, charging at Malek who stumbled backwards in his effort to run, landing on the floor behind him, his head bouncing hard as it came in contact with the marble, compounded with Loki's full weight on his chest, the knife laying across his throat, cutting a thin line with the weight of Loki's arm.   
“GUARDS!” Loki roared, the drapes at the end parting as the royal guards who had been keeping the crowd at bay now trotted into the hall, pikes at the level. Loki stood, hauling Malek up with him.  
“You bastard! You troll's spend!”   
He threw Malek against the drapes to the wall behind, yanked him back and shoved him hard with a hand to his chest, feeling ribs give way beneath his palm.   
Malek cried out in agony, “Forgive me Milord!” as the royal guards stood watching, waiting for their orders.   
“There will be no forgiveness this time! Did I not tell you never to cross paths with me again?”  
“My...Lord!” Malek gasped, “I was possessed by...”  
Loki shook him hard, his face now inches from Malek's, “I will brook no excuse from you. The High Council will deal with your act of treason.” He shoved the boy into the arms of the guards beside him. “Take him to the cells. I will inform the High Council myself.”   
He followed the guards back out through the drapes, Malek doubled over, hanging between them. Once out of the hall, he scanned the throng. Finding no sign of Eidra or Helgi, feeling all at once, faint, he retreated back into the hallway where he leaned against the wall, drawing his helmet off, dropping it to the floor with a clatter. He closed his eyes. When a hand settled itself on his shoulder, he looked up to see Thor standing there.   
“You did well, brother. I watched from the shadows.”  
Loki nodded, “Thank you.”  
“How did that wench know what was to happen? Perhaps she was in on the plot!”  
He could have yelled, chided Thor but he simply laughed, stood there and laughed.  
“You sound like a berzerker, Loki. Tell me the thought has not crossed your mind.”  
Loki stood from the wall, “It has not. Why would she be in upon a murderous plot, only to warn me about it beforehand? No, we will find the truth of the matter from the boy itself and then justice will be done.”  
“You are either overconfident or a fool.” Thor grumbled as they started for the throne room again.

Eidra was sitting before the fire, dozing, his cloak wrapped tightly around her body, her head nearly in her lap when he walked into his chambers that evening. He touched her back and she jumped, startled awake, sleep filled eyes blinking up at him until she was able to focus. She reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck.   
“Thank the Gods you are safe,” she cried as he lifted her up from the chair.  
“You are still in your damp dress? Why did Helgi not run a warm bath for you?”  
“I told her I wanted to wait for your return.”   
He carried her into the bathing room and set her on the stool. Then he walked to the bath and started the warm water flowing into the large basin. “I will fetch you a fresh robe. You should not be taking a chill. It is not good for the baby.”  
She shivered, drew the cloak tighter around her. “I was so worried, I did not think I would reach you in time.”  
He said nothing, watched the water flow into the basin.   
“Is he dead, Loki?”  
“No, he has been sent to the cells. The High Council will convict him of treason and he will be executed.”  
Eidra nearly fell from the stool as she reached out a hand to Loki.  
“Do not let him be killed! Exile him, imprison him but do not kill him. Who knows what he has said to others. What if he has seen us together? If he dies, he will be made a martyr.”  
Loki stared across the basin at Eidra, “He would have killed me, would you have pleaded for his life then? High treason is punishable by death, do you ken? I cannot, I will not go against the laws of Asgard!”  
“Do you not go against the laws with such as myself.?” She was so tired, her tongue betraying her.  
“You are not a whoreson would-be murderer.”  
“Nay, I am nothing but a voice of reason. If you love me, you will think long on this matter.”  
Loki stood, walked to her, “Do not bargain my love for the life of a lowly field hand.”  
He unwrapped his cloak from her and tossed it to the floor, drew her dress over her head.  
“But for you would I also be working in that field.”   
He led her down the steps into the water, taken by how far along she truly appeared.  
“Do not group yourself in with his ilk. You are a noblewoman in all but title to me. Now the matter is closed. His fate is out of my hands. I will brook no more discussion on it.”  
He was halfway to the bathing room door to fetch a robe before he turned around and strode back to her, kneeling beside the basin and taking her hand in his.  
“Oh Eidra, do you not see that by that same hand, if I were to ask pardon for him, tongues would wag still and perhaps for far worse than his death as a traitor to Asgard. Tell me you see my meaning.”  
“I do, my prince.”  
“It will be far easier to accept his death as a traitor than to accept that the High Council is to begin pardoning treasonous assassins and if indeed he knows of our trysts, better to stop his own tongue. Rest, I will get you a robe, have you eaten?”  
She shook her head. “I could not.”  
“Helgi will fix you something.”  
He was almost from the room again when Eidra spoke, “What about Silas?”  
“He was not involved, he will be safe.”  
“But his brother will not.”  
Loki nodded, “No more talk, we will take care of Silas, I promise.”  
She heard the door to the chamber close and she sank further into the water, the baby pushing against her open palm. She would have faced Malek herself had she been able to, had she not feared for her unborn child. She wished fervently that Loki had instead stabbed him to death and claimed that he was defending himself. She decided she would ask Loki to continue her sword lessons in the days ahead.


	19. 19

He was up and gone before she woke the next morning. She put on a clean dress, picked up the dirty clothes from the chair, wrapped her cloak over her shoulders and wandered down to the staff kitchen.  
Artra was standing at the kitchen fire, stirring the porridge in the large kettle.  
“Where is Helgi?” Eidra asked as she passed by on the way to the laundry room.  
“She went to see Petar. The poor woman is beside herself. The High Council is in session this moment as we speak to pass sentence on Malek.”  
She came back out into the kitchen, “Is Silas with his mother too?”  
“He is, he came to fetch Helgi. He was as white as milk.”  
Eidra sat down at the kitchen table, her head in her hands, “How long do you think the Council will take?”  
Artra shrugged, pulled the cap of her sleeve up to her shoulder, “Treason is easy to judge especially as he was caught in the act. They will not take long. I do not know what was going through Malek's mind. How could he think to succeed in this ruinous plot?”  
Eidra stood and looked up the stairwell. “I am returning to the bedchambers to do housework. If you see Helgi, tell her I am looking for her.”

Loki stayed absent throughout the day, missing the evening meal at least in his chambers. She wondered if he had eaten. She was at the edge of sleep, lying on her cot by the fire, when she felt the cot sag and Loki press in around her, draping his arm over her swollen belly.   
“Loki,”  
“Mmmph.”  
“We cannot both fit on this cot, I must have room.”  
In response he instead pulled her closer and she put her arm over his, “Did the Council reach an accord?”  
“Yes.”  
She peered over her shoulder at him, “And?”  
“He is to be taken to the Dying Place tomorrow morning and executed.”  
She nodded, “So be it.”  
He groaned then, leaning in, kissing that one spot on the nape of her neck that they had both learned. In the end, he took her, lying on her side, his hand trapped between her thighs as she convulsed around him, gripping the cot frame tightly with both hands, pressing her face to the pillow to stifle her cries of passion. As their bodies cooled, hearts slowed, he lay there, stroking her hair, kissing her back, shoulders, worshiping her body with his touch. “The High Council thought you should be rewarded for your loyalty to the crown.”  
“It was loyalty to you.”  
He palmed one breast gently and she arched back to him with a moan.  
“Thor would not hear of it, though. He argued that you were a servant and thus duty bound to warn me of such goings on.”  
“It is no surprise.”  
She felt Loki nod, “Your loyalty will, in the very least, help when I speak with father after the baby is born. They will look with favor on your service to the crown.”  
She was silent for a few moments, “I will wear my cloak but I will go with Helgi tomorrow to the execution.”  
He shifted, raised himself up on his elbow. “You should stay here though I know you will not. I could order you to.”  
She rolled onto her back, “I want to be there, I want to see Silas. The poor boy needs someone.”  
He stroked her cheek, “He has his mother to comfort him.”  
She put her hand to his chest, “I know but she will need comforting herself, I wish to see him, to ask his forgiveness. He is dear to me. Such an innocent child.”  
“I know, Eidra. He has been a loyal houseboy to me as well. All I ask is that you stay well out of the way, and this time, with Helgi. No running off.”  
“I will stay small and quiet.”  
“Small?”  
Her mouth opened in an O as she shoved him away from her, “Am I that big in fact?”  
He smiled, chuckled. “In the most beautiful way, my little minx. Come with me to my bed, it is more comfortable.”  
She shook her head, “What if Thor is here to fetch you early. I would rather not start a sad day off in such a manner. Go to bed, my prince.”  
With a pout, he kissed the tip of her nose and left her side. She lay there some time later, thinking of how Malek must be feeling as the night trudged on relentless towards the dawn and she shuddered, pulling her coverlet tighter around her.

 

She was sweating under the heavy cloak but she didn't dare remove it as they walked to the small grove in the forest at the outskirts of the city. The last day of May was turning out to be warm indeed, and she took Helgi's arm for stability on the uneven terrain. The baby did a fluid dance for a few moments and she put her hand on her belly.   
“The baby is moving a lot?” Helgi whispered.   
Eidra nodded, smiled, “Yes, it feels so wonderful.”  
As they reached the open grove where people had gathered, citizen, servant, noble alike, she knew it was the last wonderful feeling she would have that day.  
The members of the High Council stood in a semicircle around a grassy knoll not far from a small bog, from which mists rose into the cool morning air. Sif and Odin were in the line beside each other, talking quietly. She could see Loki and Thor at the end of the line of High Council members. They were dressed simply, tunic, breeches, heavy, black long cloaks. They were watching the crowd. She saw Loki's eyes flicker to her then back to Thor.   
A commotion at the other side of the knoll drew their attention as a hush fell over the crowd.  
Magnus, his handsome face painted with three red stripes on both cheeks, his long blond hair interspersed with braids, a wooden bead on one with the symbol of Odin carved into it, gained the top of the knoll.   
Then came Malek, his hands tied behind his back. Following him was a giant of a man, dressed in a red robe, his head draped in a red hood with eye holes to see through. In one hand he held a long leather strap, a wooden cross piece at either end. Finally, Petar who was being helped up the hill by a pale, trembling Silas. Eidra wanted to call to him, embrace him but she was helpless to do anything save watch.   
Magnus stopped, turned to the High Council and bowed deeply, then held up his hands to the sky. “Malek Skanar, you have been found guilty by the High Council of the crime of high treason to the crown by your attempted murder of Prince Loki. It is therefore the decision of the High Council that you be put to death,” at this word, Petar wailed into her hands, “your soul remanded to Niflheim, your body to lie forever in the bogs.”  
He stepped back and nodded to the hooded man who put his hand on Malek's shoulder, pushing him to his knees. She couldn't bear to see the terror in his eyes. She looked away, settling on Loki's face, impassive, distant. The hooded man took the other end of the cord and wrapped it around Malek's neck, twirling the ends together and placing the wooden ends in his palm, waiting for a nod from Odin.  
All at once Petar broke from Silas and dove to the ground at Odin's feet.  
“Mercy, mighty Allfather, mercy! That my son has done what he has done, I do not question, only do not make him to suffer. If there be an elixir, a potion that he be allowed so that he may sleep and thus not know of his fate. Hear a mother's plea and please have mercy!” She embraced his boots, sobbing. Eidra watched Silas standing there alone at the bottom of the knoll clearly in shock, whether at his mother's actions or at what was about to happen, she did not know.  
Loki turned to Odin with a scowl, “He is a traitor, father.”   
Odin nodded, “I can grant no mercy.”   
He raised his hand to the executioner but before he could let it drop, Thor bent over to Odin and whispered in his ear. Odin looked down at Petar then at Malek kneeling there on the knoll, his eyes closed, body trembling.  
“Bring Clotho to me.”  
Loki stared down at his boots, lips pursed together.  
The elderly physician was led through the crowd to stand before the Allfather, “What does your majesty wish?”  
“We need an elixir for the boy, to ease his pain.” Odin fixed him with his one good eye.  
Clotho held up a finger and reached into a small bag slung over his shoulder, “ 'Tis fortunate I thought to be prepared today.”  
He pulled out a black glass vial, put his hand on Petar's head. “Rest assured, little mother.”  
Clotho climbed the short hill to where Malek still knelt and unstopped the vial.   
“This will speed you on your way, boy, you will feel nothing. May your journey in the next world be one of redemption.”  
Malek nodded, whispered, “Thank you,” and opened his mouth, Clotho tipping the vial onto his tongue as a thick purple gel dripped out. Malek swallowed, turned his head and smiled at Petar who now stood, hands clasped before her. Seconds later his head dropped to his chest. Odin nodded, dropped his hand and the hooded man began to twist the garotte.  
Eidra kept her eyes to the ground, unable to watch the horror being played out on the knoll, desperate to shut out the wails of Petar as they lowered Malek's body to the ground so that she could touch him one last time. She chanced a look at Silas who stood, still silent, tears streaming down his face and she felt her own begin, bringing her arms tighter around her stomach, wanting desperately to cradle her baby in her arms at that moment, wishing she had stayed in her chambers.  
Magnus and the executioner covered Malek's face with a burlap sack. But for the purple cast to his skin, he would have appeared as asleep. They lifted the body between them, carrying it to the edge of the bog where they tied the feet and hands with sacks of stones, dragging the body into the water of the bog until it sank beneath the surface, finally disappearing completely.   
Loki watched Silas lead Petar away, still wailing, her hands outstretched to the sky, then he turned to look for Eidra but she was gone.

After a search that quickly became frantic when he did not find her in the kitchen or in his chambers, he happened by the Arboretum, looking into the sanctuary from the archway and spotted her, wrapped in her cloak, sitting by the large fountain in the center.   
“Eidra, what in the name of Odin are you doing here? You should be in our chambers.”  
“Of course I should.”  
Loki tilted his head, eyes narrowed, “Are you angry with me?”  
She shook her head and he sighed, “I know it is horrible to be confined to quarters like this. Shall I endeavor to speak with Odin? He may be more tractable now.”  
“No, not yet. Seeing a baby would perhaps soften his heart as you have said. I am simply..”  
He sat down beside her on the stone bench. “Simply what?”  
“Thinking I suppose,” They watched the water shooting high into the air from the middle of the fountain to land on the lower two tiers.   
“Loki, do you fear death?”  
“No, Valhalla awaits those warriors who die in battle, I will await that day.”  
She frowned, “Must you talk of it as if you wish for it?”  
“You put me in my grave too soon. I will be a father first.” he slid his hand across the bench to hers, covering it, “And a husband.”  
She glanced at him, surprised, “Dare I to hope for such a thing?”  
“You need not hope for something so sure to happen,” He looked up at her, “Do you fear death?”   
“Yes,”  
“Why?”  
“I am not a warrior, I will not be able to go with you,” She rose from the bench to stand at the edge of the fountain, trailing her hand in the water. Her throat started to sting.  
“Then I shall go with you instead. We will go to Helgafjell hand in hand, gather around our hearth and tell stories, eat, drink. Enough talk of such terrible things. Let us ease our melancholy.”  
She wiped hot tears from her face. “Forgive me. My mind dwelt today upon the baby, you and I. How much I love you and all I wished to do was hide, which is why I came here. Why I am so sad.” After a pause, she smiled ruefully, “Helgi says it is because of the baby that I cry often. I am inclined to believe her sometimes.”  
Loki stood, held out his hand. “Come, Eidra, let us go to our chambers. You must rest. Put your feet up and knit. I like to watch you when you work with your hands,” he leaned over and kissed her, “Someday I promise you shall be my wife.”  
“Were it that I could believe it,” She took the Uruz that now hung around his neck and held it in her hand, “Perhaps I should have used this long ago, stolen away back to Alfheim so that you would not have to endure such a piteous hue and cry from me.”  
He enfolded his hands around hers, “Do not say that, I would be lost without you. Alone, unloved, bitter.”  
“And you are now what? Loved yes, but worried, angry, frustrated. You must be because I feel the same. I live in constant fear we will be found out, angry because I cannot tell the world the name of the man I love, frustrated because for the same reason I cannot walk by his side.”  
“My heart, why do you not confide in me these feelings?”  
She pulled her hand away, “Because there is nothing to be done for them, nothing will help but time and I grow impatient to hold our baby, to return to my work, to be a mother.”  
“Soon, Eidra, soon. Let me take care of you. Vanquish all your worries. We will spend the day together.” he paused, seeming to think about something. “Perhaps tomorrow will be different.”  
“Different how?”  
Loki smiled, wagged his finger, “I cannot say. You must trust me.”  
She returned his smile, “My will is yours.”


	20. 20

“Get up, get dressed,” came the whisper in her ear.  
Eidra opened her eyes to see Loki standing over her, looked out towards the balcony where the sun had not quite made the horizon.   
“It is so early,” She flopped her head back down on the pillow as the coverlet was thrown back from her.  
“Get up,” he shook her again.  
She swung her feet around to the floor, “I am up, Odin's beard.”  
He set a pair of breeches and a tunic in her lap. “Put these on.”  
She held them up before her, “A dress would hide me better.”  
“No one will notice you today.” He put his hands on his hips, “Hurry, I wish to beat the dawn.”

Loki had procured for her a hooded woolen cloak that hung warm on her shoulders. She had begun to sweat by the time they made the arena. As they entered the stables, she dug her heels into the dirt.  
“Loki” She whispered, frantic, “I cannot ride the horse, I am too far along.”  
“I know this,” he took her by the elbow, moving her along, “I have readied a cart with fresh straw and a soft coverlet.”  
They passed through between the stalls to a cart and horse waiting outside along the south wall of the palace. “Let me help you up.”  
She stepped on a small rung at the end of the wagon and knelt down on the coverlet, “Are you sure this is wise?”  
Loki trotted around the front of the wagon, grabbed a similar cloak that had been lying on the driver's bench and threw it around his shoulders, raising the hood. “You wished to be free for a day, we will be free for a day. We will return to the waterfall and we will be back before evening meal. I had Helgi pack us something to eat.”  
Eidra huddled down in the coverlet, draping the cloak around her, “You are incorrigible.”  
“So I am, would you have me any other way?” he clucked his tongue and snapped the reins. The wagon lurched forward as she looked up at his back and grinned.  
“Not at all.”   
Each time they would pass anyone on the road, she would drop her head down, letting her hood hide her face. The sun slowly climbed the sky while he kept the horses at a slow trot. At last they reached the overgrown ruts of an old wagon path which led to the waterfall far from the road. She braced herself as they turned into the path and the wagon dropped with a jolt.   
“Are you alright?” He pivoted on the seat to look at her.  
“I am fine,” She smiled, readjusted herself to a more comfortable position as they continued on. They would not see another person for the rest of the day.  
They could hear the roar of the waterfall long before they could see it. When they reined the horses in, the wagon was perched on the ridge of a tall cliff overhanging the water. A large pool spread out before them, a trail to their right leading down to the water's edge, the water roaring in the distance on the opposite side as it tumbled into oblivion. Loki jumped down from the wagon and unhitched the horses to graze. Eidra let herself down and walked to where Loki was standing at the edge of the cliff. She peered at the water some twenty feet down, backing up as soon as she saw the drop.   
“I do not remember it being so high this winter,” she shuddered, “Come let us head to the bottom.”   
She undid the clasp of the cloak but before she could throw it off her shoulders, Loki had divested himself of his garments and boots and was poised at the edge of the cliff. He turned to her, “Take the trail, I will meet you!”  
She had not a chance to cry out but he had dove off the rock ledge into the water below. She raced to the edge and peered over, seeing him surface, shaking the water from his face.  
She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted to him, “You are completely mad!”   
His resounding laughter made her shake her head. “How is the water?”  
“Cold!” he shouted back, “Come down.”  
“I will, the safe way.”  
He began to swim towards the rocks along the shore of the pool as she gathered his clothes and boots and started to pick her way down the trail to the bottom. As she reached the shore, he was just hauling himself up onto the rocks and she stared unabashed at him, his finely chiseled musculature, his grace in form and movement, his sheer height.  
“You are beautiful,” She breathed.  
“So you say,” He looked over his shoulder at the water and she saw his wet hair trailed nearly to the middle of his back.  
“How long has it been since last you cut your hair?”  
He held itss length between his hands and squeezed the water from it. “I was but a child, eight or nine seasons at the most. A dear cousin had passed from this world to the next and we were made to cut our hair in mourning.”  
He took his clothes from her arms, dropped them on the ground and proceeded to lift her tunic over her head.  
“Wait,” She gasped, “What are you doing?”  
“Are you not warm from the ride? Raise your arms, woman.”  
She did so but quickly covered her bare breasts as he tossed the tunic in the pile with his own garments. He reached to unlace her breeches, saw her stance and stood back with his hands out, “Eidra I have seen you unclothed time without number.”  
“But we are out of doors.”  
He took her arms and gently pulled them away, “And we are alone.”  
He leaned over and kissed the swell of each breast, “Magnificent.”  
She giggled but could not stop her hands from interfering once more as he redoubled his efforts with the laces of her breeches, pushing her fingers aside as they dropped around her ankles.  
“Step out of them.”  
She looked down at her feet, “My boots.”  
He put a hand to his forehead and knelt to the ground where he worked her boots from her feet while she steadied herself with a hand on his shoulder. Rising then, he took her hand, guiding her along the shore to where the rocks turned to pebbles, then to sand as the pool shallowed out nearer to the thundering cataract. He walked her out until the water was at her thighs and her teeth were chattering, then he pushed off the bottom and swam into deeper water, careful to stay clear of the brutal downward plunge of the water falling from high above.  
“Gods, it is frigid.” She cried, “How can you stand it?”  
“It feels wonderful.” He motioned her forward, “Keep walking.”  
As the water reached the underside of her belly, she felt a flurry of movement, “The baby protests as strongly as the mother.” She hissed.  
“Dunk yourself under completely and get it over with. It is sheer torture to prolong it.” He swam up to her, his hair waving in the water like a black curtain against the pale sand below the surface. Another few steps in, then he splashed at her gently, making her squeal.   
“Loki, I am cooled off now.”   
He pouted then, “Swim with me, please?”  
She frowned, took a couple deep breaths casting a glance up at the surrounding cliffs and let her knees drop her forward. Cold water closed over her head, drawing the air from her lungs and she stood up, sputtering. “Odin's damn beard!” before she dropped back into the water again.   
He swam up to her and caught her mouth with his, the sweet water mingling with their kiss, cold and warm, soft, eager. He cupped her behind with his hands, drawing her to him.  
“You inflame my desire to a fever pitch.” He pulled her closer, laughing as she looked down between them at her belly,   
“Methinks you have reached your limit, little one.”  
They swam for a bit longer until Eidra stood up, her hands in the air.   
“I am numb from tip to tail.”   
They let the water drip from their bodies before donning their clothes again, still damp. Loki trudged up the hill to the wagon, fetched the basket Helgi had packed and returned to where Eidra had stretched out on a rock to warm herself, waiting on the sun to dry her. They moved to a clearing a short way from the edge of the pool where Loki spread the coverlet on the ground and opened up the basket. Helgi had packed a loaf of bread, a goodly hunk of cheese, a tied leather lace filled with dried apple slices and two pewter cups.  
“Goodness there is enough here for four people.”   
Eidra tore off a piece of bread. Loki walked to the water's edge and rinsed the cups out, filled them with water, then returned to the coverlet. They sat, eating, watching the waterfall.  
“Thor challenged me to jump from the ledge beside the waterfall one day.” Loki looked up at the ledge high above them.  
“Why in the nine realms would he do such a thing? Was he trying to kill you?”  
Loki took a long drink of water, “I do not know, I do not think so. I believe he was trying to test my loyalty, or my bravery, perhaps both.”  
“You did not do it did you?”  
Loki smiled, it was a sheepish grin and her mouth dropped open. “You are not serious.”  
“The water felt like solid ground when I hit it. I blacked out . When I came to my senses, Thor was kneeling beside me, pushing the water from my lungs. He said he did not think I would actually do it. I fractured a bone in my left leg. I was thirteen seasons old.”  
She shook her head, “It is a wonder that you survived the fall at all.”  
“The wonder is that Thor bothered to pull me from the water. He could have solved a multitude of problems by leaving me to drown.”   
She untied the lace and slid some apple rings from it, giving some to him, “Danar did something similar to me only it was by accident. He was chasing me on the grounds of our cottage and I stepped into an old well. Fortunately, it was not too far into the ground and the water was not too deep but I was terrified. No one else was home at the time so he had to get a rope and pull me out. I told him that he might have been an only child again had the well been deeper.”  
“Perish the thought.” He looked about the cliffs once more. “Thor grew out of this place eventually, preferring to spend his days sparring, working his body, drinking, carousing, at least until Sif tamed him, and that only as much as possible with the oaf.”  
“But he still carouses, does he not?” She tore off a hunk of cheese, paired it with a slice of apple and popped them in her mouth.  
Loki nodded, “Sif is a difficult woman, to say the least. She is as arrogant as him, proud, her tongue sharp as any knife.”  
Eidra sat up straight, “And that gives a man reason to seek out other women?”  
Loki took another bite of bread, his words muffled, “Now I said nothing of that. I simply said that was Thor's way of dealing with her.”  
She eyed him, gave him a short punch in the arm, “And that is the way to deal with errant men.”  
Loki chuckled, “Punch the oaf, do not punch me. I am no fool.”  
“Mmmm, indeed.”  
He brushed the crumbs from his tunic and stood up as she repacked the basket. “After you are finished, I have something very special to show you.”  
“Oh?” She closed the basket up.  
“We'll fetch that on the way back, put on your boots.”  
They began to walk towards the waterfall until they were beside it. Then Loki started to pick his way up the jumble of rocks to the cliff face running behind the great torrent. The light was muted, the rocks slippery, the air cool. He kept his hand in hers, making sure her footing was good. Finally along the cliff face, she saw a narrow path and an enclave behind the waterfall. He leaned to her shoulder and pointed at it. “Look closely and you will see a narrow fissure.”  
She squinted while her eyes adjusted to the light, until she could see a long narrow streak in the rock. “I see it.”  
He crooked a finger at her and walked towards it, “I found this one day when Thor was not here. As far as I know, I am the only person who knows of this place.” She watched him turn sideways and slide through the fissure.  
“Loki,” She whispered frantically, “Wait.”  
“Come on.” His voice sounded distant, nearly engulfed by the roar of the sheeting water behind her. She felt for the rock wall, following it until she found the separation in the rock. She looked down at her stomach, “Loki I do not know if I will fit with the baby.”  
A hand poked from the fissure and she screamed.   
“Hold my hand.”   
She could barely hear him but she did what she had been told and with one hand over her belly, she turned sideways sliding through a long, damp, narrow crevice that after a few feet, finally gave way and widened out. The sound of the water falling behind them was faint but she could hear another rumble, much deeper, like thunder. A hand on her shoulder made her scream again. “Loki I can see nothing.”  
“I know, just wait.”  
He let go of her and she started to panic, “Loki!”  
“Shhh, En varm lys til å lyse min vei.”   
All at once Loki's hand was before her face, a ball of orange light with a nimbus of yellow around it suspended in the air above his palm began to glow brighter and brighter until she could make out a wide black river a few feet distant to their left. As her eyes adjusted further, she could see the cavern they were within, was much bigger than she'd first thought. The river stretched off to their right into the darkness where the rumbling was much louder.   
“I wanted this to be my special place, and mine alone.” Loki's voice echoed in the darkness.  
“And now I know of it.”  
He nodded, “It will be ours.”  
“What is the sound we hear up ahead?”  
“I do not know.” She realized Loki hadn't moved from the spot since he had entered the cavern.  
“Have you never looked?”   
“No.”   
She turned to him, incredulous. “You have known of this place all this time and yet you have never explored it? Why?”  
“If we are to be honest with each other....fear,” Loki peered into the darkness ahead but would not look at her. “I could never ask Thor to come with me because I did not want him to, but I could never pluck up the courage to go further into the cavern.”  
Eidra strained to see further into the darkness, “What do you think is in there?”  
I think we are below Yggdrasil, perhaps near the well, Mimisbrunnr. It is at least how I fancy it.”  
“Let us get closer then. You will never know if you do not look.” Eidra took his arm but he remained firmly rooted. “Loki, I am with you.”  
He allowed her then to lead him forward, his hand holding the light, outstretched before them. The thunder kept getting louder, the vibration fairly shaking the cavern floor, resonating in their chests. They had to choose their path carefully along the uneven rock strewn riverbank. She looked over to the river more than once to see rapids that would have upended even the sturdiest longboats and the river seemed to be widening.  
“Look up ahead.” Loki whispered in her ear. She stared hard into the darkness and saw dimly reflected in the light, a sheet of water they had been getting closer to as they walked. It was ten times the width of the waterfall at the entrance of the cavern and from the looks of it at least three times as high. The spray of the cascade was reaching them even this far distant.   
“It is another waterfall.” She gripped his hand harder, “Perhaps you are right.”  
He scanned the cavern, turned the way they had come as she pulled him forward again. They had only gone a few more paces when Loki stopped her. “I feel as if we should not be here. As if we are intruding.”  
She stood still for a moment, looking about them at the black surface of the river which roiled with whitecaps, realizing that the black surface had risen a bit higher than was normal in one place, diamond like scales reflecting in the glow of the light.  
“Why don't we return to the entrance.” She tried to keep her voice steady as she reversed direction.  
“A prudent suggestion.”  
They continued their return path, she keeping an eye on the river's surface as they walked. Loki was right, whatever was in that water was likely not open to visitors, a light snack perhaps, but she was not about to indulge it. They reached the fissure and sidled through to stand behind the sheet of water. They followed the path back to the canyon and the clearing beside the pool where she flopped down on the coverlet and held her belly. “Oh my, a baby takes the stuffing out of you. I am exhausted.”   
He flopped down beside her and took her hand in his,“Thank you for solving the mystery of what was in that cavern. Let us lay here and rest.”   
She squinted up at the sun, “Thank you for bringing me to such a lovely place.”  
He turned his head to look at her,“Of course, the true mystery lies in what was swimming in that river.”  
She returned his stare, “You saw it as well?”  
“Yes, when I told you I felt we were intruding. I did not want to frighten you.”  
She laughed, “And I did not want to frighten you. How comical!”  
He rolled to his side to rest in the crook of her arm, “Eidra, if I had a sky of ink and a sea of parchment, I could not begin to write of my love for you.”  
She shifted to her side to face him, “How beautiful, my prince is a poet.”  
“You bring out the best in me.” He caressed her face, pulled her to him and they lay there until the warmth of the sun closed their eyes.

The sound of something rustling in the grass at the edge of the clearing awoke her. She put her head up, spied a doe watching them, her long ears twitching in time with her tail. It was then she noticed the position of the sun.  
“Loki!” She cried, “It is getting late.”  
Loki opened his eyes and sat up. The sun was not far from the horizon. He helped her up from the ground and grabbed the basket while she gathered the coverlet in her arms. They stopped to grab her cloak at the shoreline where she'd dropped it then they climbed the trail to the wagon at the top of the ridge. It took a few minutes to get the horses to come for the hitch and by then, the sun was touching the top of the hills.  
“Helgi is going to be out of her mind with worry,” Eidra moaned.  
He helped her into the back of the wagon and draped the coverlet over her though the weather was still warm. “So long as no one else is looking for us, we will be safe.”  
They bounced along the old rutted path and onto the main road as the light was starting to fade from the sky. She crawled up to her knees and leaned on the drivers seat beside Loki as they talked in hushed tones for a bit. When the spires of Asgard loomed large, glowing with light in the dark of the night sky, she retreated back to the wagon bed and under the coverlet until they made the stables.  
A stable boy took the reins from Loki and began to unhitch the team, watching as he helped the hooded figure step down from the wagon.  
“Loki, go on ahead,” she whispered, “ If anyone stops you, 'twill not be with me.”  
He hesitated but she pushed him gently ahead of her,”Go, I will be there presently, I want to tell Helgi we are back.” She gathered her cloak around her and watched him walk through the arena. She shivered then as she recalled that day so very long ago when she watched him wrestle with Thor in the dirt. Finally, after she felt enough time had passed, she followed him, taking a different path.   
She trotted down the spiral staircase, halfway to the bottom before she realized she had left the basket in the wagon. There was no help for it though, she would have to get it tomorrow. She made the bottom of the staircase to see Helgi standing before the fire, “Helgi I forgot your basket in the wagon, I will bring it to you tomorrow. We had...”   
Helgi swung around and put her finger to her lips. Eidra stopped and tipped her head, until she heard footsteps coming down the corridor. She turned to see Erwen standing in the doorway, her arms crossed.  
“I brought the clothes to the fat lady,” she eyed Eidra, “Now what?”  
“The fat lady has a name, it is Artra. I will not hear you call her by that name again,” Helgi scolded, “Now why not take your evening meal and sit at the table. I will return in a moment.”  
Helgi motioned toward the staircase and Eidra started back up the stairs, Helgi following her.  
Once in the corridor far away from the stairs, Helgi hugged Eidra, “You two had a good time?”  
“Helgi, it was simply enchanted. I cannot remember what life was like without him.”  
Helgi jerked her thumb towards the stairs, “The slattern was told to report to the staff kitchens this morning. It would seem she moved up in the world.”  
“Now you will have to visit me, Helgi. How is Silas, have you seen him today?”  
She shook her head, “Not today, when I asked Erwen about him she answered, 'how should I know, I am not his keeper', miserable wretch.”  
“I have to fetch our evening meal, Helgi.” Eidra's hand flew to her mouth.  
“I will fetch it, child. Go to your rooms. If I see Silas, I will send him to you. They say Petar is still insensate. Clotho had to help with a delivery this midday. Go, I will get the meals.”

When she reached the rooms, Loki had changed into a robe, laying hers out on the bed. “How fairs Helgi. Is she safely back in her mind?”  
“She was not far out of it, not for us. She has a new kitchen worker down there.”  
“Oh?” He sat on the bed watching as she undressed.  
“Yes, her name is Erwen. She was a field hand before this.”   
“Then you will have to stay up here.”  
She drew the robe over her head, “I agree. I told Helgi and she said she would bring up our meals. Do not be surprised if you find her here knitting with me some nights. I will not give up all my time with her too. Servant be damned.”  
He shook his head. “The whole staff in my rooms I tell you.”  
“You love Helgi, do not tell me different.” She sat on his lap, her arms around his neck.  
“If I do, then it is because she loves you so well.” He kissed the crook of her neck sending shock waves through her body. “How did you like my surprise today?”  
“Were it we could do that each day, be free to roam.”  
“We shall again someday,” He held up a fist and opened it, “These crystals line the wall of the cavern. When I went in before you, I picked some up, this was the best of the lot.”  
She picked up the purple faceted crystal and held it aloft to catch the torchlight. “A memento of our day together. I will talk to the goldsmith and have it put in a necklace. Perhaps I can trade a service in return, wash clothes, make a sash, sew a shirt...”  
Loki took it from her hand, “I will commission a necklace for you.”  
She lay her head on his shoulder, felt the baby move and lifted his hand to her belly, “She approves.”  
“So he does.” She poked him in the stomach and he laughed.  
Helgi's knock on the door made them jump up.   
“Evening meal delivery!” She called.  
That evening, Eidra felt more tired than usual and had nodded off soon after her meal but Loki could not sleep. He sat in his chair before a low fire, wondering, thinking, how to tell Odin that he would presently be a grandfather. He was soon asleep before the fireplace, his head resting on the arm of the chair.


	21. 21

Days went by without a visit from Silas. By the end of the week, she asked Helgi again if she had seen him.   
“No. He does his chores late in the evening and is gone before morning meal.”  
Eidra had considered searching the corridors for him but knew it was now getting more dangerous for her to be seen. He would either come to her when he felt he could or not at all. She missed him sorely. She was ecstatic when Helgi joined them one night a week later, knitting in hand.   
They had moved the chairs to the balcony to catch the evening breeze, a lantern hanging on a wire frame between them. Helgi sat on a low stool.   
“You are doing so well Eidra, the blanket shall be finished by the time the baby comes.”  
She smiled, “I had a good teacher.”  
“Oh not at all, I could teach you from now till crack of doom and if you did not have the ability, you would not be able to do it...”  
“You should teach Loki.” She giggled.  
Loki was sitting in his chair, head back, eyes closed, “No thank you, 'tis women's work.”  
“Yes men prefer the rough play.” Helgi sighed.  
Eidra nodded in agreement. Just last week, the summer games had been held in the arena near the south courtyard. It had been a rousing affair and he had allowed her to come down dressed in the hooded cloak with a pair of breeches one evening but when she had told him of being jostled by the crowd, he had ordered her to stay in her chambers thereafter. Therefore, she had tried to see from the balcony of their rooms but to no avail. He had come to their chambers that evening cut, bruised and bleeding, but with the flush of success and she had washed his wounds while scolding him for being so reckless.  
“Helgi?”  
Helgi glanced at Eidra, “Yes child?”  
“Were you ever married?”  
Helgi looked at Loki who was now turned to them, listening. She moved her ball of yarn, pulled out more for play, then sighed.  
“I was, many seasons ago.”  
Eidra leaned forward intently, “What happened?”  
Helgi cleared her throat, “He was killed in battle.”  
When Eidra put her hand to her mouth, Helgi waved at her, “There is no greater honor for a warrior than to die fighting.”   
She saw Loki nod as she sat back in her chair  
“And you never remarried?”   
“No, he was the light of my life. I could see myself with no other,” Helgi turned her work, eager to be upon another subject.  
“I saw Silas out in the fields with that girl, Ingrid,” Helgi knit a few stitches, “I did not speak to him, not wanting to trouble him while he was with a girl.”  
“Oh I am so glad,” Eidra looked to Helgi, “If only he would come see me, though I know I would shun someone who was responsible for my brother's death.”  
Loki put his hand on her arm, “His brother was responsible for his own death, not you. The fault none but his own. Believe me, there was nothing anyone could have done.”  
“He may not see it that way. Helgi if you see him, tell him to come visit me.”  
“I will dear, I will.”  
Helgi put her knitting down and gazed towards the door. “That servant girl, Erwen. She is a worrisome creature, I have a good mind to sneak down there and check on her. A lazy slattern is she.”  
“Only say the word and I shall turn her out into the fields from whence she came.” Loki waved his hand at Helgi.  
“Mmm, 'tis tempting but I shall give her the benefit of a doubt. With Eidra staying away from the kitchens now, faith I do need the help.” She resumed her knitting.  
“Do not hesitate to show her the back of your hand if she be defiant or uncooperative. A heavy hand often helps to still the threat of rebellion.”   
There was silence. Loki turned to see Eidra staring at him. She set her knitting down in the chair and struggled to her feet, nodding to Helgi, “Excuse me.”  
Loki sat up straight in the chair as Eidra stalked off the balcony into the bedroom, “What now?”  
“I would venture a guess that it was the remark about a heavy hand.” Helgi kept her eyes on her stitches.  
“Why?”  
Helgi finally glanced up at him, “Men very often miss what is right before them. You should go speak with your servant, Milord.”  
Loki peered around the back of his chair to see Eidra sitting on her cot, hands clasped in her lap, then he looked at Helgi again, “I shall be right back. If you hear the sounds of something large being broken, perhaps over my head, would you come to my rescue?”  
Helgi smirked, “I think this is your own battle, Milord.”

“Eidra,”   
She heard him but did not look up. He knelt on the floor before her, “My love?”  
“What?” Her tone was sharp, petulant.  
He laid his head in her lap and gazed up at her, “Forgive me?”  
“For what?”  
He kissed the swell of her belly, “For my advice to Helgi.”  
“So do I forgive you the advice or the time at which you said it?”  
He knelt back on the floor, his hands on her thighs, “I do not ken.”  
“You very obviously believe that your past injustices with me were warranted. What is to stop you from visiting them upon me again?” Eidra cradled her belly with her arms.  
“I apologized to you a thousand times over. You are my servant no longer, you know this to be true. It is I who so often wait upon you. Is that not proof enough?”  
She shrugged, “But what of other servants? You would still treat them as such.”  
“Because they are servants,” Loki looked up into her face, “I still do not see..”  
“Listen to yourself! Because they are servants...It would break my heart if you were to ever lay a hand on Helgi or Silas, they are as much my family as you are. They are all I have.” She sniffed, put the back of her hand to her lips.  
“No tears, I implore you,” he moaned, “Do not cry. You know how horribly it distresses me.” He put his head to her hands but she shoved him from her lap.  
“I cannot help it if I am upset, and when a person is upset, they cry.”  
He sighed, sitting down on the floor before her, “Helgi and Silas are safe. You are safe. Should I ever raise a hand to you again, I will gladly hand you my dagger and plunge it where you may,” he stared at the marble floor between them, felt her hand on his head, stroking his hair.  
“My heart, however can I stay cross with you?”   
He reached up and caught her hand in his, drawing it to him, kissing the pulse point at her wrist, tasting salt and sweet at once.   
“My darling, we have company,” she murmured, her voice husky.   
He nodded, gave her wrist one last stroke with his tongue, “Do you forgive me? Do you trust me?”  
“I do, my love. My life is yours.”  
He stood up then, offered her his arm and they walked back out onto the balcony where Helgi sat, looking up at them.   
“Is not love the greatest of all things? So what names have you decided upon again?”

 

The month of Sól-mánuðr, the haying month, was well on its way, the heat of summer building to a fever pitch. Eidra had taken her morning meal with Loki in their chambers. He'd then joined Thor, inspecting the royal fields. She had stayed in, tidying up their chambers, sweeping, dusting, when she began to feel sick. At first, she believed the heat was the cause of her discomfort though there was also the possibility of spoiled milk or foodstuffs. She had barely made it to the basin in the bathing room before she purged the contents of her stomach into it. Twice more throughout the morning she had purged until only bile and dry heaves were all she had left, that and a burning thirst. She kept returning to the bathing room for handfuls of cold water until, exhausted, she had collapsed onto her cot and fallen asleep.  
The touch of a cold hand at her face woke her. She looked up to find Helgi hovering over her. “My child, you look terrible! Are you well?”  
She shook her head, crying at the dull throb the movement produced, “I sicked up my morning meal. I should not have morning sickness now should I?”  
Helgi arranged the covers for her, “I would ask Petar but she is still in no condition to deal with her duties. She may never recover.”  
Eidra groaned and clutched her stomach. “Is the baby coming?”  
Helgi brushed a lock of hair from Eidra's face answering in a voice shaky with fear,“It cannot be. It is too early.”  
Helgi heard the bedchamber door open and she turned to see Loki walking towards them, face flushed from being out in the heat, his smile fading as he saw Eidra on her side in the cot.  
“What is wrong, is the baby coming?”  
Helgi shook her head, “Eidra has taken ill.”  
Loki was immediately on his knee at her side. “My love, what happened?”  
She was shivering, “I do not know, I have purged three times this morning, my thirst is immense, I am tired, dizzy.”   
He laid his hand on her forehead, “I am going to fetch Clotho.”

Loki strode into Clotho's quarters, nearly startling the elderly physician into losing his grip on a pewter cup he'd been drinking from as he sat in a chair reading a tome.  
“Loki, my boy, you gave me a start. What might I do for you?”  
“Eidra has taken ill, you must attend her.”  
Clotho held up a hand, “I must know what symptoms she has.”   
Loki described to him all that she had told him and he nodded, “Let me get a few things together.”  
Loki paced the floor of his quarters, “Hurry, please.”  
Clotho opened a tall cabinet beside a long table at the opposite side of the room. He took down a few various vials, a cloth, a silver spoon. Placing them in his pouch, he closed it and waved to Loki. “Take me to her.”

As they traveled the corridors, Loki spoke to him, “I am entrusting you with a grave secret, Clotho. What you are about to see, you must keep to yourself, upon pain of death.”  
Clotho gave him a curious look, “No need to be so serious about it boy, you know you may trust me.”  
When they arrived at Loki's chambers, Eidra was sitting at the side of her cot, holding her belly.  
Clotho stared at Loki and whistled, “When you spoke of secrets, you failed to mention the immensity of the thing.”  
She lay back down on her side as he knelt down on the floor before her,“My dear, let me look at you.”  
He took her wrist and felt her pulse, “Her heart is racing. Open your eyes.”  
She did so and he patted her forehead, “How long ago did you say this started?”  
“After morning meal,” Her voice sounded hoarse.  
Clotho had her lie on her back as he palpitated her abdomen and she winced.   
“When is the baby expected to arrive?”  
“Another moon at the most.” Helgi answered  
“Well she has no fever,” he sat back on his heels and stood, “Keep water coming, she must replace what she has purged. Thin rice gruel and mashed apples for the evening meal.”   
He took her hand and rubbed it. “Her skin is dry. My dear, have you felt the baby move today?”  
She nodded and he smiled, “Someone should stay with her. She should not overexert herself.”  
Loki bent over and lifted her from the cot. She whimpered, drawing her arms about his neck. “You are to stay in our bed.” He slid her beneath the covers, drawing the linen sheet to her waist. When he turned to speak to Clotho she reached out and held fast to the hem of his great coat.   
“Stay with me.”  
“I shall not leave you. Let me speak with the physician. Rest now.”  
Clotho rummaged through his pouch, pulling out a small black bottle, setting it on the writing desk beside the wardrobe, “I am going to leave this here, we may need it.”  
Before Loki could question him as to the contents of the vial, Clotho held his arm out to Helgi, “Will you walk me back to my chambers? I wish to discuss her diet with you,” he glanced at Loki, “If you have need of me, you know where I am.”

On their way back to his chambers, Clotho was pensive, his steps slow, broken.   
“What is troubling you?” Helgi shook his arm gently.  
“Many things. If I did not know better, I would say this is no illness.”  
“Do you think the baby is indeed ready to be born?”  
He shook his head, “No, at least I do not think so. I must study my tomes. I cannot be sure. It is Petar's business.”  
“She is still no better?” Helgi sighed.  
“No she is not. Who knows when she shall be able to return to delivering babies, if at all.”  
When they reached his chamber doors, he studied Helgi, “Loki swore me to secrecy so I gather her condition is not known to the family.”  
She fiddled with the edge of her apron, “No, it is not.”  
“And if it is a boy, it would be a contender for the throne, correct?”  
She tilted her head, “I suppose...”  
“And we are the few who know of her condition, correct?”  
“Clotho, you are talking in riddles.”  
“Helgi, my dove, go attend to Eidra while I read up on something.” He shooed her away and darted into his room, closing the door.

Helgi arrived at the kitchen minutes later to start fixing the rice gruel for Eidra, finding Erwen gone.  
“Oh that shiftless layabout.” She grumbled as she pulled open the sack of rice. 

“Come Eidra, eat for me please?” Loki had pulled his chair to the side of the bed and now sat with the bowl in his hand, a spoon sticking from it.  
“Not hungry,” she mumbled, barely able to keep her eyes open. All she wanted to do was sleep.  
“Just a few mouthfuls, the baby needs nourishment. If you do not eat, the baby cannot.”  
She pushed herself up on one elbow then and allowed him to spoon the gruel into her mouth. “I must drink, I am parched.”  
“I will give you water, but first another spoonful.”   
She took another spoonful, laying back down afterward, putting her arms around her belly.  
“I wish to sleep.”  
“Sleep then. I will be right here.”  
He put the bowl down on the tray, climbed into the bed behind her and hugged her to him, protecting her the only way he could now. 

Helgi was rinsing out the large kettle when she felt a tap on her back and turned.   
“Erwen said that Eidra is sick,” It was Silas.  
“Where have you been?” Helgi took his arm and shook him, “You do your chores like a thief in the night. Eidra has been asking for you endlessly.”  
He gazed at the floor, “I have been working in the fields as well, taking my brother's place.”  
She observed him for a moment, he looked to have aged five years in the month since Malek's death.   
“Well at the very least you could have told us the reason for your extended absence.”  
“I have also been spending time with Ingrid,” he muttered, his face reddening and Helgi smiled.  
“How fares your mother?”  
He shuffled his feet, “She fares, she delivered her first baby since Malek's....passing.”  
“Ah that is good to hear. You should go and see Eidra if you feel you can.”  
“Should I?”  
She sat at the kitchen table, “Well work could not have been the only thing keeping you away.”  
“I did not think she would ever want to see me again. Not with my brother's taint on my family.” Silas sat beside her, staring into the embers of the fireplace.  
“It does not matter to her, she was frantic for you.”  
He stood, “I will go see her, then I must start my chores.”

The creak of the door opened her eyes and she tried to sit up.   
“Silas,” she whispered opening up her arms.  
He blushed at first but then walked to the bed and was caught up in her embrace. “Where have you been?”  
He let her go and eased her back to the pillow, “Working in the fields as well as the palace. Eidra, I talked to Ingrid.”  
Eidra smiled, “Oh that is wonderful. Is she as nice as you thought she would be?”  
He blushed further, “Yes she is.”  
Eidra's eyes closed for a moment, “I am so happy to see you, Silas. Please say you will come back tomorrow.”  
He nodded, “I will, after evening meal.”  
She opened her eyes and held out her hand which he took and squeezed, “If I have a son, may he be as good and kind as you.”  
“Rest Eidra.” he set her hand on the coverlet.  
“Now you sound like Loki,” In response, Loki grunted, threw his arm around her and Silas jumped back, startled.  
“I did not know he was there.”  
“I am, boy. Now let her rest for her health.”  
“Yes, Milord.”  
He closed the door quietly and walked back towards the staff kitchen, he would be here tomorrow as early as he could, maybe he would introduce her to Ingrid.

 

Loki had awakened in the middle of the evening from a bad dream, a true nightmare where he was trapped in the cavern behind the waterfall with strange spiny creatures arching up out of the water and Eidra's voice somewhere in the darkness calling to him for help. He lay there until dawn broke, listening to her breathing, putting his hand to her belly to feel the baby move.   
That morning, she'd taken one bite of the gruel, purging it and everything from the previous night up into the basin. Loki sat through the day with her, alternately dozing in the chair, startling himself awake, rubbing her arm, getting her water as needed. He could think little of eating for his own health until Helgi made him promise to eat what she would send him along with Eidra's meal. 

As Helgi was fixing Eidra's tray, Erwen came running into the kitchen.   
“Artra has told me that she needs your help. Come quickly.”  
Helgi wiped her hands on her apron, “Goodness, child calm down, where is she?”  
“She is in the laundry room, I think she did not feel well.” Erwen glanced down the corridor the way she'd come.  
“I shall be right back. I will yell if I need you!”   
Wiping her hands on her apron, Helgi trotted down the hall.

Erwen held the bottle above the small bowl, her hand trembling as she tapped the bottom. She had been late to her chores because of a dalliance with the new field foreman. To make matters worse, on her way down the corridor to the kitchen, he had stopped her as well. He had said this would be all that was needed to finish the job she had started. The last dose. They would think she had died of dysentery, or food poisoning at the very least.  
She had wanted to be rid of this chore more than anything in the nine realms. She set the bottle on the table to stir the powder into the gruel. So intent was she on her task that she did not hear the footsteps on the stairs behind her until they were almost upon her. She reached for the bottle, sending it spiraling down the table in a fan of white powder. Another fumbling grab and it skittered back towards the tray. She made one more attempt, then darted down the corridor to her right into the darkness, her heart in her throat.  
Silas watched the bottle wobble in a slow circle beside the tray. Picking it up, he looked around the kitchen. “Helgi?”

Loki had dozed a while in the chair, holding her hand while she fell into a fitful sleep. He sat forward in the chair and looked out past the balcony at the evening sky.   
“Helgi is late with your tray. I am going to see what keeps her.” Eidra moaned, tightened her grip on his hand as he tried to pull it away from her.   
“Do not go.”  
“Eidra, I shall be right back, I promise.”  
He left her curled protectively into herself.

Silas sniffed the bottle and rubbed his nose. There was no smell to it. He looked down the corridor again, then at the bowl of gruel on the tray. White powder dotted the surface of the contents. The realization of what was happening began to dawn on him, his mouth dropping open in horror when all at once, Loki yanked the hand containing the bottle towards him,   
“Silas, what are you doing?!” He shook Silas's hand, the bottle dropping to the table.  
“Nothing, Milord, nothing. I swear it, I found this bottle here beside the tray. I had just come upon it myself.”   
Silas was frozen with fear, panicked. Loki picked up the bottle, then looked into the bowl, seeing the white powder stark against the ivory gruel.  
His hand shot out and took Silas by the throat, pulling him close, his teeth bared in rage, “You seek to poison Eidra! You would take revenge for your brother's death on her? She who loves you as a brother herself?”  
“Milord,” Silas gasped, his hands upon Loki's at his neck, “Please, upon my life, I would never hurt her! I swear, ahhh!”   
Loki drove Silas back to the kitchen wall.  
“I will see you follow your brother for this!” He roared.

Helgi heard the commotion in the kitchen and it spurred her heels. She arrived to see Silas nearly suspended by the neck against the cold stone wall.   
“Loki, Odin's beard!” she cried, grabbing at his hand, “Put the boy down! What is happening to everyone, is the world going mad? First Erwen tells me Artra is hurt, then she nearly knocks me down running from the kitchen, now I find you try to choke the life from poor Silas.”  
Loki relaxed his grip on Silas's throat and the boy began to cough, drawing great whooping lungfuls of air. He picked up the bottle from the table and stared at it.  
“Good Freyr what is that?” Helgi took it from his palm. “I have never seen it before.”  
Loki's head snapped up, “The new servant girl, where is she?”  
“She went down the corridor.”  
“Go fetch Clotho, take this bottle to him and tell him to come to my chambers at once. Silas!”  
The boy cringed at his name but answered, “Yes, Milord.”  
“Go to Eidra, see that no one save us gets through my door, if you must, bar it with my sword, do not let anyone in,” he squeezed Silas's shoulder.  
Silas headed up the stairs at a wobbly run as Helgi and Loki headed down the far corridor.

Helgi knocked on the door to Clotho's quarters. Receiving no answer, she tentatively pushed on the door and it swung open. “Clotho?”  
The old physician was snoring in his chair before the cold fireplace, a tome open upon his chest.   
“Clotho!” Helgi shook him.  
He snorted awake, loosening his grip on the tome, catching the heavy book at the last minute before it slid to the floor.   
“Helgi, what is the matter, what is wrong. Has Eidra taken a turn?” He peered into the candlelit darkness, “Is it evening already?”  
“Evening and then some. Eidra fares no better or worse but Loki has summoned you to her side. He gave me this to show you, it was found beside Eidra's evening meal tray and the contents had been put into the bowl.”  
Clotho eyed the bottle, walked to his cabinet and threw open the doors, “How could that be?”   
He stared at the shelves, “How did I miss it?”  
Helgi peered into the cabinet with him, “Miss what?”  
He pointed to a vacant spot far back to the rear of one shelf and held up the bottle, “This bottle belongs in my stores. Someone has been in my chambers while I was absent.”  
“Or asleep.” Helgi muttered.  
“This is a bottle of Arsenicum. This is grave indeed. Go fix her some eggs and a dish of stewed plums, they will help flush the poison from her further. I am going to purge her system as best I can. I knew something was not right.”  
He closed the cabinet and shooed Helgi into the hall, following along behind her.

Loki scoured the corridors of the palace for Erwen with a small phalanx of the royal guards. As they trooped past Thor's chambers, he opened his door and stepped out, rubbing his eyes.  
“Brother, what has happened?” he yawned.   
Loki whirled about, “Our new servant girl has sought to poison Eidra. I mean to run her through when I find her,” he tossed his sword from one hand to the other impatient, “She was sent to the staff kitchens to work. I am now sure she asked to be placed there for this purpose.”  
“Did this servant have a name?” Thor stretched his arms behind him with another wide yawn.  
“She is called Erwen. I must continue to search.” Loki kept looking up and down the corridor.  
“Loki, this is absurd.”  
Before Thor could continue, Loki held up his hand, closing his eyes, “Thor, I shall not be dragged into this debate, now I must go.”  
Thor watched Loki and the guards disappear down the corridor, only then did he retreat back into his chambers.  
The dark haired girl crouched on the floor beside the door stood and took Thor's hands, pressing them to her forehead.  
“Thank you, Milord. Forgive me for failing you.”  
“There now. I never should have given such a task to a simple servant but you seemed so eager.” He patted her head as if comforting a fretful child.  
“The bitch took Malek from me,” She growled, glaring at the closed door.   
Thor nodded, took a couple coin from the pouch on his writing desk and handed them to her. “Get yourself as far away from here as you can, I will see that the corridor is clear.”  
He poked his head out and glanced both ways then stepped back, “Go on.”  
She bowed deeply, clutching the coins in her hand, and passed before him on her way out the door.   
His hands shot out, gripped her head and turned it sharply to her left. The crackle of her vertebrae separating coincided with the merry clink of the coins hitting the marble in a macabre dissonance. He dropped her body to the floor.  
“And to your treasonous beloved you shall travel.”  
He bent to pick up the coins then hefted her body to his shoulder, walking through his chambers to the balcony. He leaned over, looking at the roiling river far below, nearly invisible in the waning light of dusk, and let the body drop over the railing into the darkness. After a second's hesitation, he tossed the two coins into the void behind it.

Clotho took the black bottle he had left on the writing desk the day before, unstopping it.   
“Forgive me, Eidra but this is a necessary evil.”  
He put his hand gently behind Eidra's head, pouring the black contents down her throat. As the evil liquid touched her tongue, she coughed, sputtering. “Gods, it is as if you bottled Helheim.”  
Clotho eased her back down on her side and she closed her eyes.   
“Did you feel the baby move today?” Clotho asked, putting his hand on her belly.  
“Yes, not as much.”  
“There is less room for the baby now,” Helgi chimed in, hopeful.  
“Have the basin ready, boy,” Clotho gestured to Silas, “The emetic will not take long to work.”  
Helgi busied herself with tidying the room, clucking her tongue every once in a while as she thought of Erwen.  
Moments later, Loki swung the door wide and strode into the room, “We have not found the whore. I have guards searching the grounds and the city,” he sheathed his sword, “How is Eidra?”  
“I gave her an emetic to purge the rest of the poison from her.” Clotho glanced at the bed, “Then she must have certain foods to cleanse the poison from her body.”  
Eidra sat up swiftly. Silas already had the basin before her when she purged the medicine as well as the contents of her stomach up, tears in her eyes while she retched for what seemed like an eternity. Loki sat down behind her and she leaned back against him with a sob.   
“It will pass, my love,” he kissed the top of her head, “All will be well.”  
She nodded, lay her head against his shoulder. “Soon I should hope.”  
Clotho took her hand and patted it, “It will take time. Now I expect strict bed rest for at least seven days. A diet of eggs, garlic. Stewed plums. Rice, beef barley soup. Make sure you drink plenty of water.”  
“I will. Loki, I must lay down.”   
He stood and eased her to the bed again, pulling the coverlet up as Clotho put a hand to Silas's shoulder, “Boy, stay here with her, see that she has all she needs. We shall return.”  
Clotho indicated for Helgi and Loki to follow him. Once they stood in the corridor with the door closed, Clotho shook his head.   
“The bottle that Silas found was from my cabinet. It was taken without my knowledge. I always keep my door locked because of the many dangerous potions and elixirs I store there, not to mention the many tomes and parchments.”  
Loki was leaning against the wall, his arms folded, “What does that mean?”  
Clotho moved in closer, his voice low, “It means that whoever did this, had to have picked the lock or have help from someone who possessed a skeleton key.”  
Loki stood up, “You think the servant girl had help? Who would want Eidra dead besides Erwen?”  
“Who indeed. Malek had friends in the field. What of his mother, Petar?”  
Helgi gasped, “Oh no, she may be distraught, but she knows what Malek did was wrong. I cannot see her doing such a thing.”  
“Nevertheless,” Loki looked to Helgi, “All must be considered . Servant or noble, it is a crime that has been committed. I will send for Petar to be brought before the High Council tomorrow. She will be questioned, perhaps she will know of anyone else we should talk to.”  
Clotho shook his head, “I doubt she will be very forthcoming with any information.”  
Loki's face was grim, “If she refuses to talk to us, I shall personally see to her myself.”  
Helgi put a hand on Loki's arm, “Milord, she has suffered so. Please have a modicum of pity for her.”  
He stared at the closed door, “I shall, provided she is not found to be the culprit. I cannot say what will happen if she is found to have had a hand in it, Helgi. I cannot promise to control my rage then.”  
Helgi dropped her eyes to the floor, “I would help you were it true, I wish no harm to come to Eidra.”  
Loki gave her a gentle grin, “Thank you, you have ever been a loyal servant.”   
“I will stop in on the morrow to check on her.” Clotho shouldered his satchel, “And I shall have our locksmith fashion a new lock for the cabinet.”  
“Helgi, will you fix Eidra a tray per Clotho's orders?” Loki opened the door to his chambers, “Eggs, some stewed fruit. I will send Silas to help.”  
Helgi bowed, “Of course, Milord, I shall hasten to it.”

Time won out and within the space of five days, Eidra was up and walking around, doing the chores Loki would let her, or rather the chores that she did without Loki's knowledge, though she would tire easily. Helgi said the baby was wearing her out though she was more inclined to believe it was an aftereffect of the poison.  
Soon after the incident, while she was knitting the edge onto a baby blanket, Loki had come into his chambers and presented to her a new dagger complete with a leather thigh scabbard similar to his own.   
“I could not feel safe leaving you alone without a weapon,” he tightened the leather straps around her leg, “Lithasblot is upon us and there are rituals that must be performed. I will be absent for a couple of days, I feel better now that you have your own dagger,”  
“Loki, you take such good care of me,” She put her hand to his cheek, “My love.”  
“I must, we are soon to be three.”  
“Soon,” she kissed him, “Very soon.”


	22. 22

“I have never been so uncomfortable in my life,” Eidra groaned, holding up her finished blanket, “..And so proud. Look, my first big piece.”  
Helgi nodded, “The yellow edging is lovely, a royal coverlet.”   
Eidra proceeded to fold it in her lap, “I had to order Loki to go with Thor riding today. He was at the door this morning, demanding that Loki come with him. I stayed seated with the blanket on my lap and he scowled at me but I did not waver. I thought he was going to upbraid me for being so impudent but he simply grabbed Loki's arm and dragged him out of the room.”  
“He has not troubled himself about you in such a long time. We may count our blessings.”  
Eidra stood up, a little off balance at first, then steadied herself, carrying the blanket to the wardrobe where she lay it on a shelf, “I'll show Loki when he returns.”  
Helgi gasped aloud, “Oh I nearly forgot to tell you, they found Erwen's body in the river. Some peasants dragged her out. Her neck was broken. She had apparently leaped from one of the balconies. At the very least, we now know she is not lurking somewhere waiting for you in the shadows.”  
Eidra put her hand to her chest and let herself back down into the chair again, “Thank the gods.”  
They gazed out over the railing at the city, “I very much wish I could help you prepare for the feast. Loki and Thor had to choose a cow to sacrifice today, I feel so useless and anxious.”  
Helgi wrapped her yarn around her needles, “It is the quickening, poppet. The baby is on its way,” She stood from the chair, “And I must go help Artra and Volsa with the preparations. I will return later with your evening meal.”  
Helgi leaned over and kissed Eidra on the forehead, lingering a moment, “Now you will have to start a bunting, my child. I will show you how later.”  
Eidra walked to the railing and scanned the south courtyard far to her right. More and more, she wanted Loki by her side. Each day seemed precious to her. Knowing soon that she would see him hold their baby and it would demand the largest share of their attention. Spending time alone would become a memory. Loki, too, seemed to sense this impending loss. She had begun to pack one day for the trip to Rialo and he had asked her where she was going.  
“I am packing to be ready.”  
Loki had lifted the dress she'd been folding, from her hand, “Ready to go where?”  
“Away, as you said I would. To Rialo?”  
He had looked quite crestfallen, “You cannot go yet. I will be so alone.”  
“As you wish,” She had finished packing the trunk and slid it beside the wardrobe.

Still, the anticipation was building. Helgi had made a layette early on. Eidra would sit on the bed with Loki and look at the little dressing gowns, the small robes, the booties and daydream about what the baby would be like.   
One evening, not long after she had packed for her trip, she heard the door open and turned to see Loki striding towards her, a smile on his face.   
“I have something for you, little mother,” He guided her back into the room, took her by the shoulder and turned her around until she was facing away from him.  
“Now close your eyes and do not open them until I say so.”  
She heard the light rustle of paper, then felt the weight of something settle against her chest, his fingers at the back of her neck and she shivered.  
“Open your eyes.”  
The beautiful purple crystal that Loki had taken from the cavern for her, lay at the swell of her breasts. It had been carved and polished into a cabochon encased in a rim of gold worked with the image of a snake who appeared to hold the gem in its coil. It was suspended from a fine gold chain.  
“The metalsmith summoned me today and told me the necklace was finished. Do you like it?”  
“It is wonderful!” She held it up to the sunlight that was streaming into the bedroom and it sparkled, throwing shades of brilliant purple across her palm. “Oh Loki, it is divine.”  
She felt his arms encircle her waist from behind as he rested his chin on her shoulder. “I must confess I cannot wait for the baby to be born so that I may again hug you face to face.”  
“I thought you did not mind this position,” she giggled.  
He arched up against her in response, “Neither did you, I seem to recall, kissed the sweet spot on her neck and she felt the lock unhinge from her knees as she stumbled a bit.   
“My prince, it is unwise to start something we cannot finish.”   
She pushed back against him, relishing the firmness rubbing against her backside as he groaned loudly, “And this, this too I cannot wait for.”  
She broke the embrace then, turned and kissed him, “Sadly, Clotho's orders stand.”  
He gave her a pat on the behind then turned to his wardrobe and opened the doors.   
“I must wear my ceremonial dress tonight. I wish you could be there.”  
She shrugged, “As do I but it is better this way. I need my rest and my back is quite sore. Are you to have a bath first?”  
“Yes, I must cleanse the dirt of the day from me.”  
“I shall go draw your water.”  
She walked into the bathing room but he was close behind, “Away with you. I do not want you struggling to get to your knees. I shall draw my water.”  
“I am far from an invalid,” she frowned, “You will wish a servant for the servant before long.”  
“Servant for the lady,” he grunted as he reached for the tap, “..and that is a find idea. You shall need a nursemaid.”  
“I need no nursemaid. I will have my lying in time with the baby first.”  
“You must have help with the baby. It is your first.”  
“I will have Helgi to help me.”  
He stood up, “Does Helgi know of your plan?”  
“Of course she does,” she followed him back out into the bedroom, “Helgi will be at the blot tonight. I hate being alone.”  
“I would miss it ere I could.”   
He reached into the wardrobe and drew out his under tunic, elaborate overshirt and long coat.   
“Not at all, you have obligations. I will be fine, I just complain to myself.”  
He disappeared back into the bathing room as he spoke, “Oh remember how I told you of Persis, the storeroom guard?”  
“Yes?”  
He poked his head from the doorway, “It would seem he has been found out. Not one but two women have fingered him. He is to be a father twice and it would seem nearly at the same time.”  
“Are you serious? The rogue, the scoundrel.”  
She heard the water stop.   
“Indeed and not a one his wife.”  
“Intrigues, palace life is full of intrigues.”  
His laughter echoed in the cavern of the bathing room, “Someday you shall see.”

 

She had watched the proceedings in the south courtyard from the balcony It was a fair distance away and she soon gave up when the pain at her back started to throb. She considered her loom by her cot, recalled once again that she had no lap to set it on any longer then looked at her needles. She needed more yarn.   
She sighed, feeling peckish. Everyone was still at the festivities so she grabbed her green cloak, drew it over her shoulders, opened the door and peered into the corridor. Finding no one about, she made her way to the spiral staircase and down into the kitchen.

She set the half loaf of bread on the table then walked to the cold cellar at the opposite end of the kitchen and drew out a covered pewter pitcher of buttermilk.  
She sliced a thick hunk of bread from the loaf, tearing into it as she poured the buttermilk into a mug. The bread was delicious and the buttermilk cold and salty. The only thing lacking was company. The baby moved about and she patted her belly.   
“Very well then, company I may hold a conversation with,” She corrected herself.

Loki steadied himself as he draped his cloak over his arm and shook his head to clear the slight buzz in his head from the wine. He opened the doors to his chamber and called for Eidra. Getting no response, he searched the bathing room. Neither was she on the balcony. He stood there confused. Perhaps she had taken a stroll to the arboretum. She had been doing that on occasion. He walked back out into the corridor and headed to his right.

Eidra cleaned up the mess on the table, put the pitcher away, and threw her cloak back on. She was about to ascend the stairs when the clatter of metal from the corridor behind her reached her ears, startling her. She sunk into the recess of the arch near the cold cellar waiting for whatever had made the noise to emerge from the darkness. She drew her cloak tighter around her, her heart pounding near out of her chest as the profile of Thor swept through the archway into the kitchen. She held her breath, pressing herself as hard as she could into the stone wall but Thor turned and saw her immediately. She held her cloak out around her, hoping it would hide her belly. “Milord, “She curtsied looking down at the flagstones beneath her feet.  
When she looked up, he was smiling at her.

Loki returned to his rooms, bewildered. Surely she had not dared venture out with Helgi? He drew off his great coat and went to the balcony to look out over the south courtyard.

 

“Where is your master, wench? He keeps you so ensconced in his chambers now.”   
Thor ambled over to her and she hunched forward, terrified. She could smell the mead on him. He put his hand to her face and pulled her chin up.   
“What is it about you that holds my brother in thrall?”   
He leaned over and sniffed her hair, whispering into her ear, “Is it your beauty?”   
His other hand came up and cupped her face. “Is it your skill? Can you make him scream your name to the four walls?”  
His hands tightened upon her cheeks and he drew her up. They were face to face now. She had never been so close to loosing her bladder as she was at that moment.  
“What is it that he sees in a lowly servant girl. Is it your pretty little mouth?” He leaned closer to her.   
She had determined long ago that the only lips to touch hers would be Loki's and to that end she made her decision. She brought her hands up and raked her fingernails across his face with a roar of anger.   
He let go of her with a bellow, “You whore!” flailing for her as she slipped from his grasp. She stumbled once, felt him yank her cloak nearly from her shoulders, his hand slip around her side in an effort to reach around her waist, sliding along her belly before she turned and shoved at him with both hands. His posture coupled with the mead served to take him off his feet. His hand let loose of her cloak and he struck the floor in a great cacophony of metal and stone.   
She scrambled up the stairs as fast as her condition would allow, his roar of rage spurring her onward, hearing his boots hit the steps at a furious pace as she made the top landing. She thought her heart would burst as she ran panting to the chamber door and flung it open, shooting through nearly into Loki's arms.  
“Eidra!” he cried, “What is going on, where...?”   
She flung herself behind him just as Thor reached the doorway and headed straight for Loki.   
“Bitch!”   
Loki reached to the chair beside him where he had lain his scabbard and drew his sword, stopping Thor in his tracks. “Hold your tongue, Thor, lest you lose it.”  
“How dare you draw your sword on me, brother! She is the one you need protect yourself from. Dismiss her, dismiss her at once!”  
“Remove yourself from my chamber!” Loki growled, repositioning the sword.  
“Look what she did to me!” he pointed to his face, bloodied with the scratches she had given him.  
“Upon compulsion I am sure of it.”  
“He cornered me, Milord,” She cried, pressing her face against his back.  
Thor made another step towards him, “She is a witch, she has enchanted you. I will see her dismissed or father shall hear of it.”  
“Do tell him, see if he does not laugh at you. She is a valued part of my household, she is my servant. She knows nothing of enchantment,” His voice faltered as he pushed Thor back toward the door, “I will take her to task. Now get out of my chambers, you drunken fool!”  
Thor was now at the extent of Loki's sword, the tip nearly at his leather clad stomach when Thor shoved the blade to the side, “If she be but a servant, if she has no hold over you, strike her.”  
Loki pushed Thor backwards with the flat of his sword, his teeth bared in a snarl, “I will discipline her as I see fit when it suits me. What right had you to... ”  
Thor gripped the front of Loki's tunic, “She has touched the person of a royal and worse, she has drawn blood! This is inexcusable. Punish her!” he roared.  
Loki shoved Thor's hand away and turned to glare at Eidra. “Never touch the person of the crown prince again, do you ken?”   
“Ah Gods! Out of the way brother,” Thor pushed Loki aside, expecting him to yield but he resisted, putting all his mass into the return shove, knocking Thor to the side, raising his sword once again.  
“Thor, you have made my business your own for far too long!”   
Thor's vambrace struck the sword with a metallic clang as he swung his arm about and lunged at Loki, finally catching him off balance. Loki stumbled to the floor, landing on his back, the sword skittering behind him towards the fireplace.  
Eidra was before Thor in an instant, grabbing at the collar of his tunic, “Leave him alone!”  
“Eidra no!” Loki cried as Thor's hand connected with the side of her head in a resounding slap and she stumbled sideways, catching herself on her chair.   
“Now throw yourself on my tender mercies that I do not drag you from this room to face the...”   
The momentum from Loki's leap knocked the wind from Thor. He staggered to the floor, his head connecting with the marble to bounce once, then again as Loki pounced on his chest.  
“GET OUT!” Loki bellowed, “OUT!” He stood and strode over to Eidra who now sat in the chair holding her cheek.   
Thor scrambled to his feet, paused, watching Loki kneeling on the floor before Eidra. Then he looked at Eidra yet again, blinked.  
“Father will hear of your insubordination, you can be sure of it,” Thor growled. When Loki ignored him, he frowned but the fire of his rage had started to diminish. He strode from the room, slamming the door behind him.   
Thor rushed through the corridor, his boots clicking on the hard marble, anger darkening his soul, clouding his mind. As he reached his chambers a few doors distant, fingers touching the carved handle, his mind finally found traction through the haze of mead surrounding it. He could see before him Eidra, her hands into fists, the sides of her gown distended slightly, feeling the roundness of her belly as his fingers had dragged across it. He let go of the handle and started off on a trot toward Odin's chambers.


	23. 23

“Tomorrow you will travel” Loki stroked the redness on her cheek where Thor had connected with her, “I shall charge Helgi with your care. I will provide you with enough coin and set you up in Rialo with Ren until your time. Then you will rejoin me with our child. I will speak with Father as soon as you are safely away. When mother sees you with that little baby cradled in your arms, she will bend him to her will. He shall not be able to deny you.”  
He slid her robe over her head caressing her belly as he did so, “I shall miss this, touching you, feeling the baby move under my hand.”  
“Ah, the baby will still move beneath your hands only I shall be across the room,” She put her hands atop his as her face turned grave, “I am afraid though, I have felt a change these past couple of days, my back has hurt constantly. Helgi says it is my quickening. I fear traveling so close to my time.”  
She slid beneath the coverlet beside Loki. He pulled her in against him, his arm now pushed just below her breasts for it was all the room afforded now. “It cannot be helped. You should have been gone a long time ago but it was my selfishness kept you here, my precious little minx. I will see you to the borders of the city,” he kissed her shoulder, “You will go in comfort. No harm will come to our child.”  
She touched the amethyst necklace at her throat, “I shall be lost without you.”  
“It will not be for long, I promise you.”  
She reached backwards, placing her hand on his hip, “I will hold you to that.”

 

Odin sat on the edge of the throne, elbow on his knee, head in hand, “My son, the hour is late and you are clearly in your cups. Tell me once more what has happened to you that you have summoned me from my chambers?”  
Thor waved his arm toward the Throne room doors, “Loki has gone mad. His servant girl attacked me, scratched my face, and Loki drew his sword on me when I sought to discipline her.”  
Odin nodded, yawned.  
“He threw me out of his chambers in a rage, but it is worse, much worse. I told you, Father, I said that this would come to pass and now it has. The servant girl, Eidra is with child.”  
Odin sat back in the throne, “How know you this?”  
“I saw it with my own two eyes! Felt the swell of her stomach with my hand. She is great in fact. Father I demand you remove her at once from him and do something about this. He must be made to realize the error of his ways.”  
Odin stroked his beard, “I must speak with members of the High Council about this.”  
Thor stuck the palm of his hand with his fist. “But what shall we do about it now?”  
Odin stood, descended the few steps from the dais and stood before Thor, “Take the royal guards and remove her from his chambers. From there you will bring her to me that I may see with my own eyes what be her condition. Then you will she is sequestered somewhere, unharmed. She is still a citizen of Alfheim, never forget that. I will then speak with Loki back here to the throne room. I will talk to the Council members then to him.”  
Thor nodded, grim, “Yes Father.”

 

She snuggled closer to Loki, adjusting her position yet again. Her back was worse this night than it had been previously. The excitement had agitated her, the baby mirroring her discomfort as it fidgeted within what little room it had left. She had just closed her eyes for the tenth time when she heard footsteps outside the door.   
She lay there listening, her heart pounding. It was too late to leap from the bed as the door creaked open. Loki was sound asleep but she didn't dare move to shake him. She sunk further beneath the coverlet as Thor entered the room followed by three guards, their faces terrifying in the torchlight. Thor walked to the cot and bent over, throwing the bed sheets to the floor. He was looking for her.   
She was seized with the urge to get up, run past him out the door, and keep running until she dropped or, worse, was caught. He stood up then, whirled about. When his expression changed from rage to glee, she knew she'd been found. She closed her eyes tightly, heard his footsteps and suddenly she was being wrenched from the bed to sprawl on the marble floor. She curled into herself with a cry, arms across her belly as she knelt on the floor. Loki was immediately over her, hovering like a wild animal, one arm pulling her beneath him, the other brandishing his dagger at Thor.   
“It ends here, brother!” Thor roared as he nodded to the guards.   
“Come no closer to her!” Loki hissed, “I will stain this blade with blood tonight.”  
Thor reached out to Loki, dodging the swipe he made and catching the crook of his arm, flipping him to his side on the floor where he pinned him as the guards lifted Eidra from the floor. “NO!” Loki bellowed, “LEAVE HER ALONE!”  
He bucked hard beneath Thor's weight but Thor was determined to keep him flat and he bore down.   
“I will make you to suffer for this!” Loki shrieked as Eidra struggled to free herself from the guards.  
“Loki!”  
“Eidra!” He thrashed harder, “Bite, kick, scratch...mmph!!” Thor's hand had clamped firmly over his mouth.  
“Take her to the cells. I will come for her later.”   
Only with great effort did the guards start to drag Eidra from the room, so violently did she flail at them. The door shut behind them as she began to scream, her cries muffled by the heavy wooden doors.   
Thor backed away from Loki, anticipating his strike as he hurled himself upward at Thor's chest.  
“You bastard!” He caught Thor across the chin, canting his head to the right, “Where are they taking her. Why have you done this?!”  
“Because you have lost your way, brother. You have fallen into a trap, she has enchanted you, I tell you. She plays you for a fool, takes liberties with you and now you are beholden to her for the child in her womb. This must not happen, there will be no bastards in the House of Odin.”  
Loki stood there in shock, too stunned finally to speak.  
“Come, father wishes to speak with you.”

 

Eidra had fought against the guards until all strength left her They had taken the dagger Loki had presented to her, unstrapping it from her thigh. When the guard's hand had lingered too long upon her leg, she had kicked at him, connecting with that most painful of places. Her insubordination had earned her a resounding slap against the bare skin of her.   
Now she sat on a short chair in the corridor leading to the throne room, the same corridor Malek had hidden in to kill Loki. The royal guards stood facing away from her, their pikes hard upon the floor. She grimaced as pain shot through her back then subsided. 

Thor parted the drapes at the end of the corridor nearly causing Eidra to fall from the chair in her effort to back away from him. He took her by the arm and hoisted her up to stand, guiding her through the drapes at the other end of the corridor to emerge blinking into the torchlit throne room.   
Odin was standing before the throne, the Valknut carved into its gilded gold back, tall red drapes in valances on the wall behind it.  
She looked about for Loki but he was nowhere to be seen. Thor held her out to Odin as if she was a mare for him to inspect before purchase.   
“See father, how he has arrayed her in finery, like a noblewoman?” He lifted the amethyst from her throat and she cried out as he gave it a yank, snapping the chain.   
“Please give it back to me!” She reached for the necklace in Thor's hand but he dropped it to the floor, crushing the crystal beneath his heavy boot.   
“You troll!” she shouted.  
Thor turned to her, “Curb your tongue lest you lose it!” he took her by the arm, gripped her chin “Those things are not for the likes of a servant wench.”  
She pulled away from him, stumbling backward, “Do you hate me so that you would not allow a small gift from him. Is it jealousy?”  
Thor took a step toward her with a mind to break her jaw and tear out her tongue but the hall rang out with the ringing thunder of metal on marble.  
“Stand down!”  
Odin motioned to Eidra and she felt herself grow small before him. She knelt to the floor.   
“Mighty Allfather.”  
“Up child.”   
She rose and stood before him, head hung down. When he put his hand to her belly to feel the roundness, the fullness there, she felt violated. She had all she could do not to shove his hands away from her as he nodded, “You will go with the royal guards now. I must speak with my son.”  
Thor all but threw her through the heavy drapes into the guards midst. “Take her to the cells. Await my command.”

When Loki was finally allowed into the throne room, the horizon outside the arched windows had begun to brighten with the dawn of a new day. Thor and Odin stood on the dais at the top of the steps, their heads together as they talked.  
Odin noticed him first and touched Thor's shoulder, “Loki, come here.”  
Loki mounted the steps in twos, “Father...”   
His foot kicked something which skittered along one of the steps. Glancing down he saw the remains of Eidra's necklace shattered in pieces. All at once he felt disoriented, enraged, his mind racing as he paced back and forth before them.  
“Thor has invaded my private chambers and taken Eidra from me! I ask that she be allowed to return to me. She has committed no crime, she should not be treated as a criminal.”  
Odin held up his hand, Loki saw a weariness in his eye. “She is with child.”  
Loki stared at Thor, “Yes Father,”  
“And the child be yours?”   
“Yes.” His answer stronger then, with more conviction.   
“You see!” Thor cried as he waved his hand at Loki, “He admits his indiscretion!”  
“I never intended to deny it, you simpering fool,” Loki growled, shoving him hard as he passed.   
“Then the child is a bastard.”  
Loki stopped pacing, “Something which I yearn to correct! Father, I beg your permission to marry her!”  
“Impossible,” Thor was now blocking his path, “She is lowborn! A half-breed.”  
“She is a daughter of the House Denari in Alfheim, her father holder of the Sacred cup of Volundr!” Loki cried, “She is of noble blood. What more must you need?”  
“She would not be here now were she recognized by the High Court as such. She is merely a servant.” Odin shook his head.  
Loki turned to him, a sick dread in the pit of his stomach,“She saved my life, does that count for nothing?”  
“And I say again,” Thor held up his hand, “She was merely doing her job. Not to tell Loki of that whoreson Malek's murderous plot would have been treason on her part.”  
Odin backed away from them and sat down on his throne, crossing his arms as Loki whirled on Thor, “She warned me because she loves me. Does it make the deed less noteworthy then?”  
“It makes her a fool.”  
Loki slapped Thor's chest hard, “Speak not of her in such a manner. But for her telling me, I would possibly be dead. Would that be preferable, am I that much of a threat to your place on the throne?”  
Thor's face flushed crimson with rage, “You are second in line to the throne for the time being. When I produce a son, he shall be my heir!”  
Loki clapped him on the back, his smile dripping with sarcasm, “Come now, brother, surely you must have a son somewhere amongst your own bastards that you may convince Sif to claim as her own.”  
Thor's hand shot out and grabbed Loki by the throat, nearly taking him off his feet.  
“Brazen whoreson! Your heart is as black as a Dökkálfar, as cold as the wastes of Jotunheim!”  
“Enough, both of you!” Odin shouted, leaping from his chair.   
He turned to Loki, “The law as written by the High Council places the fate of the prince regent's children in the hands of the crown prince who judges whether they be worthy to wear the crown if it be necessary. A bastard falls also under this law. I have seen kingdoms topple for the claims of such a one, I will brook no infighting amongst my heirs.”  
Odin rubbed his temple, “This being said, it is out of our hands. The woman remains a citizen of Alfheim regardless of where she lays her head every evening. Therefore she will be brought to face the High Court. Be ready to travel on the morrow.”  
Loki wrenched himself from Thor's grip, “She nears her time, she cannot travel!”  
Odin pointed at Loki and crooked his finger at him to approach. He put his hand on Loki's shoulder, speaking low.  
“My order stands firm. The child will come regardless. Consider whether it would be better to see it birthed in Alfheim or here under your brother's watch.”  
Loki looked to Thor who was still trembling hard enough to make his armor clank and squeak.   
“It would seem we must take our chances. We will prepare to travel.” He stepped back and bowed to Odin.   
“Your brother will accompany you with a small contingent.”  
Loki looked to Thor, “Do you not trust that I will do as I am ordered?”  
Thor shook his head, “I do not.”  
Odin tapped his staff on the marble again, “Make yourself ready.”

 

Loki flew into the kitchen where Helgi was standing by the fireplace, wiping her hands on her apron. Upon the table sat two trays, “Milord, what is wrong? I was on my way to bring up your morning meal.”   
It was then Helgi saw the wild, desperate look in Loki's eyes, “Is the baby on its way?”  
“No, they have taken Eidra.”  
“Who?! When?” Helgi rushed to Loki, taking his trembling hands in hers, “Sit, Milord.”  
She guided him to the bench at the kitchen table and eased him down. “Tell me, now, what has happened.”  
He put his head in his hands, “The foolish girl. I told her to remain in our chambers but she became hungry. Thor found her here in the kitchen and attempted to ravish her. She scratched him and escaped to our chambers where Thor confronted me. I told him to leave but he returned and discovered us lying abed. He knows Eidra is with child,” his voice wavered, as tremulous as his hands.  
Helgi sat beside him, all pretense of master and servant gone. She put her arm about his shoulders as he continued, “I could not stop them, Thor kept me pinned while the guards dragged her away. I will never forgive him, never.”  
“Where did they take her, my boy?” Helgi hugged his shoulders tighter.  
“I know not, I expect that she is in the cells. I must see her. She will be beside herself.”  
“Have you talked to Odin? Have you told him what Thor did?”  
He looked at her as if he had not seen her before, “I have just come from an audience with him,” he stood up from the bench, “They are sending her back to Alfheim.”  
Helgi pressed the hem of her apron to her mouth, “Oh gods no, it cannot be true.”  
“I would it were not. Odin says she is a citizen of Alfheim and must appear before the High Court there. I entreated him to reconsider. I said I wished to make her my wife. He would not hear of it, would brook no discussion in fact.”  
Helgi bit her lip to hold the tears back but it was little use and she let out a small sob.  
Loki turned to her, “Pack what you must, I will have you with us. It will soothe her greatly. See that Silas is also prepared. He shall accompany us as well.”  
“Milord, the baby may come at any time. She cannot be expected to ride, 'tis too dangerous.”  
He threw his hands in the air, “I have told them this but they would not be moved. I will procure a wagon with clean bedding for her.”  
“But, Milord..”  
“Helgi,” he leaned over to her, “The fate of our child rests in Thor's hands while we remain in the realm of Asgard, thus we have little choice but to acquiesce to Odin's orders.”  
Helgi stood and wrapped her shawl around her. Though it was the cusp of summer, she felt chilled to the bone, “What have we to fear from him?”  
“Thor has said he will tolerate no bastards in his kingdom,” he muttered, “At least none that are not of his own loins.”   
“What? Loki how say you....”   
Loki's hard stare conveyed the horror.  
“The Gods wept, surely his heart is not that hard..”  
“We must assume it may be. I am not willing to bet my child's life upon it. Please Helgi, hurry and pack, she will need you. Send for Silas, tell him to make all haste.” She watched Loki run up the stairs, then trotted as fast as her old legs could carry her to Clotho's door.

Clotho opened the door as Helgi flew into the room, “Clotho, Eidra has been taken. Myself and Silas are to travel with her to Alfheim on the morrow!”  
Clotho gripped her shoulders with his gnarled hands, “She must not. It is too close to her time.”  
“Thor insists. Loki fears Thor will not allow the baby to live if it is born here.”  
Clotho nodded, his face grim, “The law says the crown prince possesses the power to protect his right to succession.” He sat down in his chair before the cold fireplace and appeared to think hard upon something. Helgi found she could not stand still and so paced around the room. Finally Clotho stood up and opened his cabinet.   
“Where is it?” he mumbled as he moved bottles about, peering into the shelves, “Ah.”  
He took a small green vial from the shelf and put it in her hands. “We will find a way to keep the baby safe.”

Helgi descended the stairs, feeling the cold damp leech into her bones. She readjusted the small basket and the blanket atop it to get a better grip upon them as she approached the high desk where sat the head jailer, a large man with fiery red hair and a short beard, dressed in a kilt and pair of dirty old boots, other than that however, he was naked to the waist.   
“I need to see a prisoner,” Helgi pulled herself up straight.   
“Name o' the prisoner?”  
“Eidra.”  
The jailer scanned the parchment before him, “There be no Eidra on me list.”  
Helgi rolled her eyes, “For Odin's sake, the servant girl?”  
“Oh, aye, why did ye no' say that?”  
“I wish to see her.”  
The jailer scratched his head with a massive, dirt-blackened hand, “I canna let ye, Helgi.”  
Helgi set her basket on the stone floor and put her hands on her hips, “Whyever not?!”  
The jailer crooked his thumb in the direction of the ceiling, “Blondie's orders.”  
“Skiver, do you wish me to tell your dear mother that you would not allow succor to be given to a poor helpless girl?” Helgi fixed him with a steely gaze.  
Skiver scratched his head even harder, “Miss Helgi, d'ye wish me to go agin' me orders?”  
“Yes.” She bent over and retrieved her basket, “Yes I do, now be quick about it, I have food and blankets for the poor thing.”  
Skiver pursed his lips together, then blew out a lungful of air, exasperated. He picked up the ring of keys on the desk before him and stepped down from behind it, “If anyone asks what happened, d'ye think ye could say ye threatened me with yer kitchen knife?”  
She held up her hand, “Skiver, I nearly stuck you like a suckling pig.”  
Skiver smiled, “Oh, aye, and I can act all afright.”  
“Thank you, Skiver, truly.” Helgi patted his beefy arm.  
“Aye,” He grunted as he picked the key out of the mass on the ring.

Eidra lay curled up on a bed of straw, shivering, the silk robe she'd been wearing when she was taken, scant protection against the cold damp of the cells. Voices reached her ear, nearly inaudible followed by footsteps and the jingling of keys. She struggled to sit up, only managing to get to her knees as the jailer reached the door to her cell. When she saw Helgi standing behind him, she began to cry.   
As soon as the door was opened, Helgi rushed in, set her basket down and opened the blanket, encircling her in it as Eidra wrapped her arms around Helgi's neck, sobbing.  
“Oh Helgi, I am so frightened. It was like a bad dream. Loki was going to send me to Rialo this very morning but it was too late. I should have stayed in our chambers while he was absent. Thor would never have found me out. I thought Loki was going to run Thor through with his dagger.”  
Helgi heard the cell door close as she rocked Eidra, cooed to her.   
“Helgi, call to me when yer ready. If I see Blondie comin' I'll fetch ye.”  
“Thank you,” Helgi called out.  
“What is to happen to me, Helgi?” She sniffed, wiped her nose with the back of her hand.  
“They are sending you back to Alfheim to face the High Court.”   
Eidra stiffened, “What? No, NO! I wish to stay here with Loki, where is he?”  
Helgi pushed her back to look at her, “He will be accompanying us. I am going with you and so is Silas,” she paused, “As well as Thor.”  
“ He comes along just so he might torture my prince.”   
Helgi squeezed Eidra's arms, “Now listen well to me. Loki is certain Thor is going with us to see that you are delivered to Alfheim but also to see that no bastards be born in this kingdom.”  
“What?” Helgi felt Eidra start to tremble and she bolstered her up.   
“Now, now to that end I have spoken to Clotho. He has provided me with the means to save the baby's life should it decide to come before we are safely in Alfheim.”  
“How?”  
Helgi shook her head, “We will speak of it while we are on our way to Alfheim. There are too many ears here in the palace.”  
“I cannot believe that Thor would harm a child. It would be too brutal even for him.”  
“Then it is a good thing I can,” Helgi turned from her and opened the basket, “How are you feeling?”  
Eidra sat back on the straw, “Miserable, my back pains me so. I am cold, hungry and afraid.”  
Helgi handed her a hunk of bread and a piece of cold mutton, “The pain in your back means the baby is in position to be born. The question remains, will it be a Magnus or a Cait?”   
“Cait, I am sure of it,” She offered a piece of bread to Helgi but she shook her head, “You need it much more than I,” she patted her stomach, “I have all the padding I need. It will be alright, poppet.”  
“Will it?” Eidra put the bread in her lap, “Even I cannot but think the worst. I need to see Loki.”  
“You will soon, I am sure. He will be there on the morrow with us. I had to beg Skiver to let me in. I expect his orders for Loki are much stricter. Do not be cross with him.”  
Eidra shook her head, “I will not though I wish I could feel his arms around me now.”  
Helgi sighed, “I had such fears as this when you first told me of your love for him and now I am seeing them played out before mine eyes.”  
“But it was all for love, all of this. That must count for something.”  
Helgi took her hand and patted it, “Love counts above all else, child, but it seldom conquers all.”  
Skiver was suddenly at the cell door, “Come on Helgi, I hear footsteps and they be heavy, I canna risk ye bein' in here.”  
Helgi quickly rose to her feet, wrapped the contents of the basket in a cloth, and set them beside Eidra.  
“I will see you on the morrow, I will bring you a fresh dress as well,” She leaned down and kissed Eidra's forehead, “I love you, poppet.”  
“And I love you, Helgi, thank you so much for everything.”  
“Helgi, come now!” Skiver whispered frantic.  
Helgi followed Skiver down the row of cells and around the corner to find Loki standing there.  
“Helgi?”  
“Milord,” She curtsied, “I brought Eidra a blanket and some food.”  
“Thank you for that,” he turned to Skiver, “I wish to see her.”  
Skiver turned bright red, “I canna let ye. Blondi....Lord Thor's orders were firm. Ye would be barred from seeing her until the morrow.”  
Loki stepped up to the desk, eyes ablaze,“Thor be damned, bring me to her.”  
Helgi looked up at Skiver then to Loki, “If you see her and then must leave her there in the cell, would it not be ten times worse? Come with me to the staff kitchen and I will make you a posset to calm your nerves.”  
Loki gripped the edge of the desk hard, “I want nothing else save seeing Eidra. I need to see her, Helgi. You do not ken my words.”  
She placed a hand on the small of his back and he flinched.  
“I do ken, Milord and I know how hard it would be on her. Let her rest, she shall need her strength with the coming dawn. You will see her then.”  
She felt Loki's shoulders drop and he backed from the desk.  
“I am powerful sorry, Milord.”  
Loki turned to Helgi and she could see he too had spent the morning in tears.  
Helgi took his arm and guided him up the stone steps out of the cells. “Come, let us ready ourselves for the journey ahead.”


	24. 24

“My dear, you should not worry yourself about such matters as these.”  
Frigga glared at Odin, “Do not patronize me. I will worry as I please.”  
Odin turned another page of the tome and continued reading, drumming his fingers on the tall stand at which he stood.  
“What is the use of worrying when it does little else but give you bad humors?” Odin leaned closer to the page, following the words with his finger.   
Frigga wanted to throw the book to the side and jump atop the stand, screaming. Instead , she walked up to him and stood at his side, “The laws of the High Court of Alfheim?”  
“Woman,” He grumbled as he turned another page.  
She kept silent, stayed at his elbow as he hunched forward again to read, turned the page back, then forward again. She edged closer still until Odin sighed and stepped back from the stand, “Please feel free to intrude upon my research, my dear.”  
He rolled his eyes as she slid in front of him and began to read. “I did not mean it as an invitation.”   
After a moment, however, her head came up and she stared at him, “You are sending that innocent girl to die.”  
Odin reached before her and gently closed the book, “I am following protocol. I am doing what I must so as not to offend the Alfari people. Are you prepared to go to war for the sake of one servant girl?”  
Frigga shook her head, “Surely they would ken if we were to take responsibility for her, offer her asylum.”  
Odin took Frigga's hands in his, “The High Court will do whatever it must to preserve its heritage.”  
Frigga pulled her hands from his grasp in anger, “The laws are antiquated. Were it someone else, a highborn noblewoman, you would set the whole of the Asgardian army at the border.”  
Odin walked back to the book and reopened it, “Read a bit further, my love”   
Frigga leaned in to where Odin was pointing on the page, after a moment, raising her hand to her mouth as Odin caressed her neck.  
“Do you ken now? Would you instead give up your son?”  
“There must be....something else.....she carries our grandchild...” Frigga's words faded into silence.  
Odin closed the book once more, “In this matter, Thor is justified. I cannot change fate.”  
Frigga looked about the vast library, willing the solution to leap from the endless tomes and parchments piled on the shelves, then she folded her hands before her and bowed. “Forgive me, my husband. It is truly a pity. Loki seemed so very happy, what would it have been for Thor to look the other way? ”   
Odin took her hand once more and kissed it, “It is not in his nature to, shall we say, share. As I have said, worry yourself no more. The hour grows late. I am going to retire for the evening.”  
Frigga followed him to the entrance of the library, “I am going to walk in the arboretum for a bit to clear my head.”  
Odin waved his hand, “As you will.”  
Frigga watched him walk away, noticing his stride was a bit shorter nowadays, a bit slower. She stood in the corridor for a minute, twisting her ruby necklace about her fingers, then found her own purposeful stride in the opposite direction.

Skiver was dozing in the chair before the desk when Frigga arrived. She tapped on the wood with her knuckles, standing back as Skiver flailed his massive arms and sat forward with a snort.“Troll's pizzle!”  
When he realized Frigga was standing before him, he stood and bowed deeply, “Beggin' yer pardon, yer Majesty. Me gob gets the best a me. What are ye doin' down here at this hour?” Skiver scratched his chin, “In point o' fact, what are ye doin' here at all?”  
Frigga folded her hands together, “I am here to see the prisoner, Eidra.”  
“The wee lass? She's one o' me most popular inmates 'twould seem.”  
“Popular?” Frigga tilted her head.  
“Oh aye, Lord Loki, the cook Helgi...” He paused as Frigga held out her hand.  
“Please hand me the keys Skiver. I will not need your assistance tonight.”  
Skiver stared at her open hand, “Ye canna be serious, yer Majesty. Beggin' yer pardon. These keys are me lifeblood. If I were ta lose 'em, I'd be seeing the inside o' those cells meself.”  
Frigga gave him what she hoped was her most beatific smile, “I am not going to steal them, only borrow them for a bit.”  
Skiver stared down the row of cells, “Yer Majesty, I can unlock 'em for you. Been doin' it half me life.”  
Frigga kept her hand out and waggled her fingers, “Please, Skiver.”  
He sighed, setting the large iron ring in her hand, “I am no' walking away from me desk. Ye canna ask me that much.”  
Frigga patted his hand, “Not at all. I shall be back presently.”

Eidra heard the footsteps outside her cell. She raised her head from her arm and peered into the torchlit hall through the bars, catching a shimmer of light as a silhouette fit the key into the keyhole and swung open the cell door.  
She struggled to sit up, wincing at the pain in her back, as the figure approached and knelt down before her, “My dear child.”  
Eidra gasped, stuttered, “You..your Majesty.” and took Friggas hands in hers, pressing them to her forehead, “Forgive me, I cannot rise to bow.”  
She felt Frigga's hand smooth her hair at her shoulder, “There is no need to bow, but you must rise.”  
Eidra grimaced, set her jaw and with Frigga's help, she was soon standing, a hand at her back.  
“Now come with me, I am going to spirit you away from this terrible place,” Frigga began to guide her from the cell but Eidra pulled back.  
“Your Majesty, where are you taking me?”  
She watched Frigga look down the hallway, “I will bring you to the stables where I will have a cart readied to take you out of Asgard.”  
“What of....,” Eidra stopped, “What of Lord Loki?”  
Frigga gestured for Eidra to join her, “I will tell him you are safely away from here.”  
Eidra came nearer, “Where will I go? I was to travel to Rialo.”  
Frigga nodded, “Then you may go there. I shall see you have safe passage.”  
Eidra shook her head, “If I leave, I will never be able to return. I cannot be apart from him.” She retreated back into the cell.  
Frigga turned to her, “There is much more at stake than you know, my dear. If you go to Alfheim, your life will be forfeit.”  
Eidra hissed as another spasm raced across her back, “I know, but I must hold out hope that the circumstances shall change the outcome.”  
Frigga took her by the shoulders, “Are you so willing to give up everything for one man? Why will you not take this opportunity?”  
Eidra felt tired, weary enough to drop, “If I escape I will be outcast. If I do as I am meant to do, there may yet be hope for redemption.”  
Frigga let her hands slide to Eidra's arms, “And if you are forced to reveal the name of the father of your child?”  
Eidra cupped her hands at Frigga's elbows, “I would die for him.”  
The sound of movement at the end of the corridor made Frigga step back into the shadows.  
“Your Majesty, I will never forget what you have tried to do for me, and for your son. You must go now before you are found here.”  
Frigga stuck out her chin, “I am above reproach,” but she gave one last glance down the corridor, then gathered Eidra in a tight hug, “May you soften the hearts of the righteous.”

Eidra watched Frigga relock the cell door then disappear the way she'd come, only then did she return to her blanket on the pallet and wrap herself in its warmth as she lay there arms across her belly, waiting for the morning.

 

Loki was in the courtyard at dawn, having spent a sleepless night in his chambers sitting in her chair. He had ordered fresh straw and heavy blankets be put in the wagon where Eidra and Helgi would ride. A servant was knee deep in the straw, strewing it around, evening it out. Clouds were building on the horizon, threatening rain.  
“Fix a canopy for the wagon.” He tapped the side of the wagon to get the young servant boy's attention.  
“Yes Milord.”  
He stood at the archway leading to the arena and waited.

Helgi drew the dress over Eidra's head, “It is dawn and more, Thor shall be furious.”   
“Fie upon him, what more can he do to me that he has not already done?” Eidra yanked her dress into place and bent forward, her hands at her back, “I am in such agony, the stone floor did me little good. Curse Thor and his insensitivity.”  
The guard standing at the cell door with his back to them, cleared his throat. “We must make haste.”  
“I am aware of it,” Helgi grumbled, “Come, child, have you your slippers on?”  
Eidra nodded, “Let us go.”

Loki saw her walking up the arena stairs and he rushed to join her, ignoring the glare from Thor as he sat atop his steed. He took her hand and kissed it, held her arm as they climbed to the top through the archway into the south courtyard where he helped her up the rear step of the wagon. He then climbed in behind her, easing her to the blanket laid down over the straw.   
“I had the servant boy erect the canopy to protect you from the weather.” He turned and held out his hand for Helgi to grab as she pulled herself up into the wagon where she settled herself beside Eidra. He heard fast footsteps then and the wagon sank as Silas heaved himself up.   
“Forgive me, Milord. I...I fell behind, I had to pack.”   
Loki nodded, “Sit, we are nearly ready.” He knelt in front of Eidra, took her face in his hands and kissed her long enough to spur Thor to approach the wagon and kick it with his boot. “Brother, enough of this. We must head out.”   
He broke the kiss, “We will find a way out of this, I swear.”  
She tried to smile as he let his hands from her face, “I know we will, my prince.”  
“My love,” 

 

He glared at Thor who spurred his horse forward at the head of the caravan, gesturing at him to follow suit. Loki held his steed, defiant until he was even with the wagon and only then did he spur his horse into a canter. Thor's jaw tight, he faced forward and said not a word as they started out the gate towards the realm of Alfheim.

The jostling cart was agony to Eidra. All she could do was lay in the straw and try to make herself as comfortable as possible. Helgi tried to distract her by rubbing her back. talking to her about the baby but she could only moan with each heavy bump. Helgi would look every once in a while to Loki who had dropped back and was now keeping pace at the rear of the wagon, worry plain upon his face.  
The clouds had burned off and the sun was directly overhead when Thor called a halt to the caravan. He trotted back to the wagon where Loki had reined in his horse, watching him.  
“The river ahead is swollen beyond its banks here. We will have to scout for another crossing less dangerous than this..I would prefer not to use the bridge, if possible we should look for a shallow spot.”  
“I fail to see why you wished to take the old toll road in the first place, you cannot possibly be ashamed of what you have done, can you?”  
Thor's horse stamped the ground, mirroring his irritation, “I wished to avoid the bridge.”  
“What is wrong brother?” Loki snorted, “Are you adverse to paying the trolls? Perhaps you are worried about your last encounter with them.”  
Thor glared at him, steering his steed beside Loki's, “This would not be a problem were you able to keep out of your servant's bed.”  
Loki bit his lip, reluctant to get into a row out here in the middle of nowhere but he touched the hilt of his sword as he retorted, “No it would not be a problem were you able to keep your hands off of her.”  
Thor glanced over his shoulder into the wagon where Helgi, Eidra and Silas were huddled together staring out at them. “I would prefer a quicker end to this, we will head upstream to the bridge.'

They could see the bridge in the distance as they followed the riverbank. Upon the bridge, a being of middling size was walking back and forth across it. Occasionally, the being would stop and stare down into the water. The bridge loomed closer and closer until the being spotted them, walked to the end of the bridge they were fast approaching.   
Loki dismounted from his horse, relishing the chance to stretch his legs. He nodded to the troll who now stood before him. He was much shorter than any of them, more the stature of Silas than anyone else but plumper. He wore dark brown blowsy breeches, a tan tunic much too long for himself and a maroon velvet vest. Likely he had traded a passage for the garments. They looked much too fine to be draped over such a one as this. The poor wretch was shoeless, his stumpy feet black with road grime. He had braided his black hair into one long plait down his back but nothing could help the dull look on his dim face, or the glaze over his brown eyes as he walked up to Loki.  
“Ya wantin' passage?”  
“Yes, what is your price?”  
The troll rubbed his whiskered chin, “Lemme see what ya got in yer wagon.”  
“That is your price, that we satisfy your curiosity?” Loki tilted his head.  
“Naw, jus' wanna see.”  
Thor had dismounted by then and walked up to the troll, “Where is Malkor?”  
“Dead.”  
No explanation was given. The troll shuffled his feet on the ground, then wove around Thor to the back of the wagon.  
“Brother we have not time for this,” Thor groused while the troll knocked on the wooden slats as if testing the quality.  
“Of course, you are the one in a hurry. I say the river is too high to cross, we must use the bridge so we must wait. You want to start a war with the trolls, be my guest.”  
Thor crossed his arms, “Ridiculous.”  
The troll walked around to the back of the wagon where three pairs of eyes stared out at him. After a minute he waved to Loki to approach. He pointed into the wagon. “I will take tha' one in the middle.”  
Loki smiled good-naturedly, “Oh no, these are my household. They are most certainly not for barter,” He glanced up to Eidra, winking at her.  
“Find another bridge...” The troll turned and trudged away from the wagon.  
“Wait, we have other items, we have coin of the realm,” as Loki was feeling for the pouch at his belt, he heard a sword being drawn from its scabbard.  
“We also have the threat of cold steel ready to pierce your heart, foul being,” Thor growled, the tip of his sword just touching the tip of the troll's bulbous nose.  
“Unfair dealing, you are worse than the elf folk with their tricks.” The troll's face wrinkled in disgust.  
“Then name a fair price and we can deal fairly with you.” Thor put his sword tip down in the dirt and leaned on the hilt.  
The troll walked to the side of the road and eyed the length of the small caravan, made to count on his fingers, finally switching to his other hand, looking bewildered when he ran out of digits. He walked back to Thor, cast one more look at the wagon, then shrugged, his answer almost a question, “Twenty coin?”  
Loki opened his purse and doled out the toll into his palm whereas the troll stepped out of the way, hand outstretched, gesturing them across the bridge. Loki and Thor mounted their horses again as the wagons lurched forward, the sound as the horses pounded the cobble of the bridge resounding out over the water.  
Loki fell in step behind the wagon where Eidra was sitting up, her hands across her belly. “Were you worried I was going to trade you for passage, my little minx?”  
Eidra blushed at the use of his private endearment, “Yes, my prince,”  
He raised an eyebrow, his smile searing into her heart, “I daresay not even the Bifrost is big enough to warrant such a trade in all the nine realms.”  
Loki could see Thor far ahead of him at the front of the caravan, “A little longer and we will be able to make camp for the evening.”  
“I wish it were not so,” Eidra locked eyes with him, “For you will not be by my side.”  
“I will steal away when the camp is quiet and visit you, my love.”  
Helgi cast a glance at Silas, “Milord, the boy.”  
Loki smirked, “Ah yes, we will whisper our words of love to each other later,” He gave Silas a nod, “The boy's education will begin soon enough I think.”

The clouds had begun their assault yet again and a light rain dampened the entire entourage. Rain dripped from the hood of Loki's cloak to the pommel of the saddle. He would slow his pace to check on Eidra every few minutes until Thor shouted at him to come ride by his side. Eidra had fallen into a fitful sleep from the rocking of the wagon, the pain in her back eased to a dull ache. They had just come to a rise in the road, water running in rivulets down the wheel ruts when the wagon started to slide to the side of the road. One wheel wedged fast against a large boulder, pitching Eidra, Silas and Helgi into a heap. They would have slid down the wagon bed to the ground had not Helgi dug her heels into the frame at the end of the wagon, bracing them. Loki was off his horse in an instant.   
“Eidra, are you alright?”  
She sat up with a grimace, “Yes, what in Odin's beard happened?”  
“The road gave way, we will have to pull the wagon out of the rut. Get out.”  
He watched her inch her way to the rear of the wagon. “Put your arms about my neck and I will lift you out.”  
She put her head against his shoulder, relishing the feel of his body against hers again, and then he was setting her down on the ground beside the boulder where the wheel had sunk in the mud. Silas having jumped down himself to stand beside Eidra, now assisted Helgi in stepping down from the wagon. Loki took his cloak from his shoulders and draped it over Eidra's head, “We will be as quick as we can.”  
Despite their best effort, it took some time to free the wagon from the mud. As they topped the small hill and glanced around, they could see the surrounding valley opening up into a wide glen. The lights of Rialo glittered far in the distance. The sun was nearly at the horizon.   
“We will go a bit further then we will make camp. The men are hungry and tired.”  
Eidra climbed into the wagon first, helped by Loki, then Helgi and Silas. As Eidra adjusted her skirt, she felt a wet warmth flush the insides of her thighs. She looked over at Helgi in horror.  
“Helgi,” she whispered as the wagon lurched forward, “I think I have wet myself.”  
Helgi's eyes grew big as she reached under Eidra's skirt, felt the moisture and brought her hand to her nose.   
“By the gods, your water has broken.” She tugged at Silas, “Tell Loki it has begun. We must make camp soon.”  
Silas crawled to the end of the wagon, peeked around the cover to the side where Loki held his horse at a canter. “Milord, please.”  
Loki reined in the horse until he was even with Silas who leaned over and whispered to him. “Eidra's time is here.”  
Loki steered the horse to the rear of the wagon and peered inside.  
“Her water has broken, the baby is coming,” Helgi's face was a study in terror.  
“We will stop soon. I will have the guards set up your tent first,” Loki put his head up over the canopy, seeing Thor still at a canter at the front of the caravan, then he ducked back down. “How are you feeling, Eidra?”  
“As well as might be expected,” She managed a smile for him just before she drew breath in sharply, her eyes brimming with tears. “Why now, why could it not wait?”  
“Shh, poppet, all will be well,” Helgi held her as she moaned. “Do not tighten your tummy, breathe through the pain, it will be easier.”  
Helgi waved to Loki, “Go, do not act as if something is wrong, do not give your brother reason to suspect.”  
Loki had turned pale. He looked ready to jump into the back of the wagon with Eidra. Instead he steered the horse back into the road again and kept even with the wagon, ears pricked for the slightest sound of distress.

The men worked feverishly in the growing dusk to erect the tents. Thankfully Thor was thus also involved while Eidra sat on the wagon, riding through the contractions that would tighten her stomach into a hard ball. She would breath through her nose, biting on the strap of Helgi's pouch to hold her tongue until the contraction passed.  
At one point Thor walked past them as they sat on the edge of the wagon, stopped, then returned to stand before them. He put a hand roughly on Eidra's stomach and she shrieked but he held his hand there. Suddenly he arched forward with a grunt as Loki's fist found the center of his back and he spun about.  
“What were you thinking?!”   
“I was thinking that you should never again touch Eidra,” Loki retorted, “What gives you the right to place your hand on her person?”  
Thor scowled at him, “I may touch a servant in any way I see fit. She looks to be in distress. I wished to see if the bastard's time approached.”  
Loki pushed Thor from the end of the wagon and held his hand up to Eidra. “Come, the tent is finished.”   
She stepped down to the ground, willing the contraction to wait until she was safely away from Thor's scowling gaze but the baby would not be ignored and she gripped Loki's hand hard as she doubled over. Helgi leaped from the wagon to attend her as Thor's face split into a grim smile, his eyes trained on the swell of her stomach.

 

The contractions were like nothing she had ever felt before. Helgi had sent Loki and Silas from the tent, telling them that this was no place for men. Silas had darted from the tent but Loki had gone reluctantly, placing a kiss on Eidra's damp forehead, “I will be outside ere you need me.”  
It was well on toward midnight when she raised her head from the down pad, “Helgi, it feels like I must push.”  
Helgi took her hand, “Get up and squat, put your arms around my neck. It will help the baby come.”  
Eidra struggled to rise, crying out as another contraction hit her and she fell back to the soft pad panting.   
“I am so tired, Hel,” she gasped after the contraction had subsided.  
“I know poppet, it will be all over soon.”  
The tent flap opened and Silas slipped inside, white as milk. Helgi was about to scold him when he leaned over and whispered in her ear, “I overheard Thor talking with the guards, he means to take the baby when it is born.”  
Silas sat back on his heels to look Helgi in the eyes. Helgi nodded, “Go back outside, stay close.”  
As Silas left the tent, Eidra raised her head to look at Helgi, “What is wrong?”  
“Nothing, now try to rise up again, hurry.”  
Eidra managed to reach a squat, draping her arms, heavy around Helgi's neck. She arranged a linen blanket below Eidra and knelt with her hands ready to catch the baby.   
“Helgi I must push.”  
“Yes child, I will count to ten, then you must rest,”  
She began to count, could feel Eidra's body shaking from the effort, wobbling on her feet, leaning forward when she let forth a sob and stopped, panting.  
“Again, Eidra.”  
“I....cannot.”  
“Again.”  
Eidra took another deep breath as Helgi began to count.  
“I can see the baby.” She put her hands beneath Eidra and touched the crown of the small head. She took one of Eidra's trembling hands and brought it down between her legs, “Do you feel it? One more push should suffice.”   
Helgi counted to ten once again as Eidra bore down with all her might. When the head popped free, Eidra cried out with relief. Helgi supported the head as the shoulders slipped through, finally spilling the child into her waiting hands.  
“You did it!” Helgi lay the infant on the linen blanket, “You have a beautiful baby girl!” Helgi cried, tears rolling down her cheeks. She felt Eidra's arms unlock from her neck as she flopped back down to the pad, sobbing with joy.  
“A girl....we have a girl.....”  
“The baby has been born with a caul,” Helgi tore into the caul, setting it aside on the fresh hay then wiped the baby clean as well as she could.  
Eidra struggled to her elbows, “I do not hear her, is she alright?”  
“Yes she is, the dear one seems to know she must not make a sound. The caul is a sign of greatness, this is a good omen.”  
The baby flailed her arms, giving a small squeak as Helgi cleaned out her mouth. Other than that, she remained silent as Helgi prayed she would. Helgi took the knife she'd laid beside her and a length of twine and cut the umbilical cord, tying it at the baby's stomach.  
“Let me hold her,” Eidra whispered.   
Helgi wrapped the baby in the blanket and handed her up to Eidra's waiting arms.  
“Look at her, she has dark hair like Loki. Gods she is beautiful.”  
Helgi took the vial from her apron pocket, her hands trembling, Clotho had said one drop would be enough for an infant.  
“Hurry, child,” She held out her hands, “The potion must have time to do its chore before she is seen.”  
“Oh Helgi I want Loki to see her,”   
Helgi nodded vigorously, “And he will but if the baby is to be safe, we must do what we discussed. You must be strong for the both of you.”  
Helgi uncorked the vial, knelt beside Eidra and opened the baby's mouth, letting a drop of the liquid down her throat.  
“What if it does its chore too well, what if she dies?” Eidra said amidst a fresh spate of tears.   
“Then it is a better way to go than at the hands of a monster.”  
Helgi rose and pushed open the tent flap, motioning to Silas who had been waiting by the entrance. When he slipped inside, Helgi took him by the hands, “Your chore will be the bravest and the most important. You will volunteer to bury the baby but you must take her to Rialo, find someone to take her in and be back here in haste.”  
“Ren,” Eidra looked at Helgi, “Find the woman named Ren, tell her the baby is mine.”  
The baby had grown quiet and still in her arms. “Helgi, tell me her heart still beats.”  
Helgi leaned down and put her ear to the infant's chest, fearing for a moment the worst had come to pass, finally finding the thread of a beat though respiration was all but undetectable.  
Helgi had been about to tell Silas to fetch Loki when the tent flap was thrown open and Thor entered. “Where is the child?”  
Eidra was sitting up now, clutching the baby to her chest. “She was only here for a short time, she sleeps the eternal sleep now.”  
Thor bent over, reaching for the baby in her arms. Helgi stole a panicked glance at Eidra who looked ready to pounce on him. He felt the baby's chest, put his finger under her nose. Finally after an exceeding long while, he handed the baby to Helgi.   
“Milord, I shall take care of the baby.” Silas had appeared at his elbow, Helgi heard the panic in the boy's voice.   
Bury it in the woods, then so that we might end this folly.” He threw the tent flap open and strode from the tent, nearly walking straight into Loki who was on his way inside.   
“The child has passed on.” Thor muttered.  
“It cannot be!” Loki stumbled forward, “Out of my way!”  
Thor stepped aside to allow him in, then dropped the flap behind him, leaving the four of them alone. 

Loki dropped to his knees beside Eidra as Helgi placed the baby in his arms. The weight of her body served to increase his grief a thousandfold as he put his forehead to her little chest and moaned, rocking back and forth on his knees.  
“Milord, perhaps it was Erwen's poison did it. The little dear has been through so much.” Helgi put her hand on his back, the heave of his chest causing the tears to sting her throat.  
Loki looked up at Eidra, “Say her name, say the name we chose so that her soul is not lost.”  
Eidra swallowed, opened her mouth, a hitching sob, then, “Cait, dear Cait.”  
Helgi touched his arm gently. He turned to her, kissed the baby's forehead, then handed her to Helgi.  
Loki leaned over to Eidra, “When all has been made right. We shall mourn properly and then we shall try again,” he kissed one hand and then the other, holding them to his chest.  
The tent flap opened again and Thor walked back inside with a spade which he handed to Silas, “Go boy and do your chore,” then he gestured to Loki, “Come brother, it is over.”  
Eidra could see something change in Loki's face as he let her hands drop and stood up, staring at the tent flap through which Thor had just passed.   
“Loki, do not go out there like this.” Eidra touched his boot but the words seemed not to register as he threw the flap aside and followed his brother.  
Helgi handed the baby to Silas, “Keep her warm and make all haste to Rialo, take the spade and hide it somewhere. When you return, dig a hole and refill it so that they will think you have done your chore. Hurry now before the potion weakens.”  
Silas shoved the spade under one arm. When the baby was handed to him, his lip began to quiver, “Helgi I am frightened.”  
He felt a hand upon his breeches and looked down, “I am in your debt, Silas. If it takes forever, I will repay you for this great kindness.”  
Helgi pushed him toward the flap, “Go, boy, make haste.”  
Silas emerged into the night and stopped short. Loki was atop Thor, his blade drawn against Thor's neck and he was shouting, “You take my woman from me! My child has passed from this world to the next and you will not allow me even to console her in her grief?! You are a tyrant!”  
Thor shoved Loki from him with a roar, “And you will ever be but a prince. You will never sit on the throne. You lack the conviction, the strength, even your ability to punish, to discipline has faded. You have failed our father, our kingdom. You have made an abomination and fate has paid you back tenfold.”  
Loki's feet were beneath him in an instant, his dagger swung across to rake Thor's cheek as he threw his weight into Thor's chest staggering him once again but not unseating him. He caught Loki's hand then, “Do you wish to be the one who ends me?” he shook Loki's wrist, “Do you?”  
The knife dropped to the ground, lay there glinting in the torchlight. Thor let Loki's wrist free and Loki sank to the ground, his head in his hands.  
When Thor spied Silas standing there, open mouthed, he made to advance toward him, “See to your chore, whelp!”  
Silas shot like an arrow into the woods to his left, nearly tripping over the roots of a tree as he made his way through the underbrush. He kept the few lights of Rialo always to his right until he was sure that the camp was far enough behind him to head for the village. He kept moving, carefully picking his way along, only the moon serving to light his path. When he finally stepped into the rutted road leading to the center of the village, the baby had taken up a lusty cry, fully recovered from her ordeal and quite hungry.   
He looked about at the houses but most were dark. One house had candles burning in the windows and it was there that he decided to try first. He knocked on the door once, twice and heard footsteps from inside. The door swung open and an old woman in a long robe and bed jacket appeared holding a candle in her hand. “Who knocks on my door so late?”  
Silas bowed, “My name is Silas, Milady, I must find a woman named Ren. Are you she?”  
The elderly lady shook her head and cackled, “No, no, but I will take you to her.”   
She backed into the house, shoved her feet into a pair of boots by the door, picked up a lantern and closed the door behind her. As Silas followed along behind her, the baby started to calm down a bit, as if she knew that they were going someplace safe and warm.  
“How is it a young boy like you comes in the middle of the night with such a package?” the old woman rasped.  
Silas glanced over his shoulder at the woods from which he'd come, “I was trusted to do this chore and I must do it.”  
The woman nodded, her profile craggy, even more ancient in the lantern light “And Ren is your goal. What a grand mystery.”  
They stopped at a small dark cottage with an overhang along its front. The old woman knocked on the door. No answer. She knocked again.   
“Come Ren, you have visitors,” she shouted. Somewhere in the village, a dog began to bark.  
After a long time, a light appeared beneath the edge of the door and it creaked open just a little, “Who goes there?”  
“It is Gerta, I have a boy come to see you.”  
The door opened and Ren peered out into the darkness, “A boy at this hour? Whatever for?” The woman narrowed her eyes to stare at Silas,stopping short as she saw the baby in his arms, “What be your name, boy?”  
“My name is Silas, Milady.”  
The hand holding the candle trembled slightly, “Milady says you? Come in, thank you Gerta.” She closed the door behind her, shutting the elderly lady out before she could make her way inside.  
“I was told to bring this baby to you.” Silas unfolded the blanket to reveal the baby's chubby face and open mouth as it searched for a nipple to latch onto. Its tiny hands opened and closed and it began to cry again, indignant at being disturbed  
“Let me see,” Ren took the baby from Silas's arms.   
Ren moved the blanket from her face and gazed down at her. “Whose child is this?”  
“Eidra's, Milady.”  
The starch seemed to run out of Ren's legs. She sat heavily in a nearby rocking chair beside a tall fireplace.   
“This is Eidra's child? What has happened to her?”  
“Nothing yet, she is being taken back to Alfheim to face the High Court and feared for the life of her child which chose to come while we were on the road.”  
Ren put a hand to her mouth and closed her eyes, “I fear the asking but must know for my own sake, who be the father?”  
Silas hesitated, “Lord Loki.”  
Ren rocked forward, clutching the baby to her chest, “The child of a royal, a princess here in Ren's humble hovel?”  
“Please, Milady, my time grows short. I must return to the caravan so that they do not know. Will you keep her here? Someone will come for her. I must go.”  
“Wait, what is her name?”  
“ 'Tis Cait.”  
She looked at Cait's face and nodded, “I will care for her. Go now and may the gods bless your return.”  
Silas left the small cottage with a light heart. The baby was alive, he had done what he could to help his dear Eidra and to Hel with the consequences. With one last look at the cottage, he started back up the road to finish his chore.


	25. 25

When Silas finally set the spade on the ground beside the tent, the sky was starting to brighten on the horizon. The camp was still quiet. He crept into Eidras tent, dropping to the hay beside Helgi and Eidra. Helgi had her hand at Eidra's back, as if she had been rubbing it. Silas tapped Helgi on the shoulder, and she turned with a snort.  
“She is with Ren,” he whispered.  
Helgi's hand came up to cover his, “Dear boy, we are ever in your debt. Lay down and rest while you still can.”  
Silas lay staring up at the roof of the tent beside to Helgi,, “How fared she after I left?”  
“Mmm, it took much to console her. This will go far in easing her mind. Now rest.”

The stamping of a horse outside the tent opened Silas's eyes. It was light outside. Helgi stirred as he rose to his feet. Eidra was still asleep. He pushed aside the flap to find Loki dismounting from his horse. Since Silas had been born, the dark prince's cruelty and quick temper had been well expounded upon. Now, standing before him was a haggard, gaunt man, dark circles beneath his blue-green eyes, a day's growth of whiskers darkening his face, who looked as if the color had drained from his world.  
He gestured to Silas who trotted up to him.   
“Show me.”  
Silas began to panic as he tried desperately to ken Loki's question, the panic swiftly turning to fear as he realized what Loki was asking him. Silas had returned in the dark, dug a small hole, shoved a small log into the hole then refilled it before he had made his way through the woods back to the camp. He'd been barely able to see his way back to the encampment. Now he searched the tree line for a familiar landmark as he started into the woods, Loki following him. Every now and then,he would look back to see what the camp looked like from one angle or another, recalling the flicker of the torches through the trees. Finally a vista of Eidra's tent caught his eye. He scanned the ground, found the disturbed dirt, cursed himself for the lie he had been asked to keep, then pointed.  
“There Milord.” then he was struck by the horrible thought. What if Loki wished to dig up the body to bring it to Asgard for burial? Silas backed away from the makeshift grave as Loki drew his sword, knelt down, eyes closed, with his forehead leaning on his hands as they rested on the hilt. Silas saw his lips moving in silent words and he stood quietly by. A shout was heard from the camp, “Loki!”  
The hands gripping the hilt tightened but Loki did not move. When the shout came again, his eyes flew open, lip curled into a momentary snarl that swiftly faded as he regained his feet, walked to the tree nearest him, withdrawing his dagger. With long hard strokes, he carved a crude X deep into the bark.  
“So I may find this place again,” he muttered.   
“LOKI!” Thor called again, “Come along!”  
Loki whirled about to glare toward the encampment, striding past Silas who followed him at a trot. When they reached the circle of tents, Thor was watching them, hands on his hips.  
“Boy, get to work,” Thor waved at him and Silas darted away to the tent.  
Helgi was folding the rugs to put in the wagon. Eidra was tying the bodice laces of her dress when Silas re-entered the tent.   
“Silas!” Eidra cried. She enfolded him in her arms in a fierce hug, “I can never thank you enough. Someday I will try to repay you, I promise.”  
Silas had gone bright red but he returned the embrace, “Repayment is not needed. I would do it all again a thousand times over.”  
“Come, my boy, take the rugs to the wagon. We must be off soon.” Helgi held out the bundle to him and he took it, pushing through the flap. He hopped onto the wagon bed, positioning the rugs for the women to sit upon. Loki stood by his horse, his brother speaking to him though Silas doubted Loki heard much, such was the expression on his face.   
When Helgi left the tent, her arm around Eidra, Loki walked around Thor as if he had been invisible, escorting Eidra to the wagon, his hand at her back. Helgi climbed in with help from Silas but Loki and Eidra stood there at the rear, holding each other while the guards dropped the tent behind them. He stroked her hair, cupped her face with his hands, kissed her forehead, clung to her until the signal to move was sounded and he helped her into the wagon with one last kiss.  
Eidra settled down onto the rugs beside Helgi and watched Loki mount his horse. Only when he had steered his horse from the wagon did Eidra turn to Helgi, “I am so worried about him.”  
Silas nodded as Helgi patted her hand, “He knows not what you know. He mourns for his child but to tell him of our deception now would put her in danger. You know he would search for her and Thor would follow him. It is best to leave the telling until after we have seen the High Court and Thor is well away from us.”  
“Oh Helgi, will he ken my reason?”  
Helgi watched the road wind away from them, “He will. He must.”  
“He said he slept not a wink last evening, and now he does not eat the morning rations. He will be exhausted. I shall try to convince him to eat later.”  
Helgi smiled, “If anyone can convince him to do anything, I daresay it would be you.”

When they reached the outskirts of Rialo, a light rain had begun again. Eidra sat forward in the wagon, hoping against hope that Ren would hear the wagons and step outside with the baby. Luck was with her as they passed and Ren stood beneath the canopy before her cottage with a little bundle in her arms. As the wagon passed and Eidra waved to her, Ren smiled, patting Cait's back. Eidra clasped her hands together and mouthed the words, “Thank you.”   
Rialo soon dropped away along the road and they continued on to Alfheim.

The spires of Freyr's castle began to rise out of the valley before them until the vista opened up. The mountains rose high above as they descended into the valley proper finally making the front gates a little past midday.  
Thor dismounted from his horse and approached the large iron gate, calling to the sentries on the other side. “We must speak with the king. Tell him Thor Odinson is here to request an audience.”  
Loki approached the wagon, “We will reach an accord with this, Eidra. Then we will return to Asgard and I will find a way to convince my father to accept you.”   
He reached up into the wagon and patted her feet, then was gone to the gate to stand with his brother.  
Silas and Helgi peered around the canopy over the wagon, watching, waiting until finally the gate rose and the caravan advanced to the interior.

Freyr was already in the courtyard.   
“Thor, what brings you here to Alfheim?” He stared past them, “And with a retinue.”  
Thor glanced behind at Loki and Eidra, “Your Majesty, I must speak with you about a matter for the High Court.”  
Freyr nodded, “Very well, what does it concern?”  
Thor shook his head, “Your Majesty, I desire to speak with you in private.”  
Freyr looked again past him at the caravan, “As you wish, follow me.”  
Loki began to walk with them when Thor turned and put his hand out, “No, brother. You must stay here.”  
Loki's shock was evident on his face. “I should be included...It is as much my concern...”   
Thor whirled on him, “Not another word, I order you to remain here.”  
Loki seemed ready to tackle Thor, “This is an outrage! I have as much right to this audience as you...”  
“Brother, it is my express command. Stay here, you shall have your chance to speak.”  
Loki stared at the ground, trembling, his voice a low growl, “As you wish.”

The sun had dipped below the spires of the palace, casting most of the courtyard in shadow. Loki paced back and forth for a time until Eidra stepped from the wagon and begged him to come and sit with them. After much protest, he finally relented and it was there he sat when Thor and Freyr exited the castle again. This time Freyr approached the wagon, looking inside.   
“Eidra, I have sent couriers out to gather the High Court. Your father should be here by nightfall,” He turned to Thor, “We will prepare quarters for your contingent. The High Court will take a couple of days to assemble. Until then, I am your most gracious host.”   
Eidra bowed, “Thank you, Your Majesty. I am honored.”  
Freyr eyed Loki, who was silent. “Come our servants shall show you to your rooms.”

Eidra and Helgi were given a room together. The walls were spartan white but it was furnished with a massive four poster carved wooden bed lain with a royal blue coverlet and heavy blue drapes hanging from the canopy to pull around it for privacy. There was a small fireplace at the end of the bed with two red velvet wing-back chairs flanking it. A small wardrobe stood in one corner and a private balcony looked out into the valley stories above the palace grounds.  
Helgi sat on the bed, “It will be good to sleep somewhere other than the cold hard ground tonight.”  
Eidra nodded and flopped down on the opposite side with a groan. Helgi turned, “How are you feeling, poppet?”  
“Not as sore as I was, hungry, tired, worried.”  
Helgi walked to the balcony and took in the view, “Such a long way down.”  
Eidra's smile was tight, “I am sure that is the reason we were given this room.”  
“Do you think they expected us to flee?”  
“Thor did.”  
Helgi laughed, “Flee where? Back to Asgard?”  
“Perhaps.” Eidra joined her on the balcony. “I only know I wish I were there right now with Cait and my dark prince.”  
Helgi put her arm around Eidra's shoulder, “You will have your wish, someday.”

 

The houseboy opened the door a crack and peeked out at the tall courier standing on the doorstep. The royal standard was all he needed to see as he flung the door wide and stood back. Eldan rose from the table where he, Suram and Danar sat at their evening meal. The courier bowed as he approached the table, “His Majesty, King Freyr, requests your presence at a meeting of the High Court.”  
The courier handed Eldan a letter with the royal seal stamped upon it. Eldan took it, taking care to avoid Suram's stare, and cracked the seal. He began to read the letter, the color draining from his face with every word until he swayed and sat down heavily in his chair. “Thank you.”  
The courier bowed to him, turned on his heel and was back out into the evening. The houseboy closed the door behind him and was about to return to his place by the fire when Eldan summoned him over. “Boy, saddle my horse. I must ride to the castle tonight.”  
As the boy snatched a lantern and flew out the door into the darkness, Suram watched Eldan set the letter on the table, covering it with his hands. She reached out and put her hand atop his.  
“Eldan, what is wrong, what has upset you?”  
He sighed, “I must go to the castle to speak with Eidra. She is there. She was brought there by Thor of Asgard. It would seem I have made a mistake.”  
“Mistake, what sort of mistake?”  
Eldan stood, taking the letter and putting it in the pouch he slung over his shoulder. “I cannot discuss it right now, not until I have spoken to my daughter.” He took his cloak from a hook on the wall. “There is no need to wait up for me. I will be late.” 

Helgi was brushing Eidra's hair when there was a knock on the door.   
“Enter.” Helgi shouted.  
A guard stepped into the room and held the door open as Eldan walked though. Eidra smiled until she took in his grim countenance.  
“I must speak to you privately.” His eyes moved to Helgi who rose from the bed.   
“I will be outside, poppet.” She kissed Eidra on the cheek and left the room following the guard out into the corridor.  
Eldan sighed, opened his arms and Eidra flew into them. “My little girl, what trouble have you wrought?”  
“I did not know I had wrought any.”   
Eldan pushed her back from him, “When I gave Lord Loki the Uruz, I did not expect you ever to use it. I thought his request was simply a gesture of kindness, however unusual, on his part and now I find that you have broken our sacred laws,” he hung his head, “It is my fault, this is entirely my fault. I should have told you when you were a child. I should have told you why you must remain pure. It was not enough simply to tell you that you had to remain thus.”  
Eidra smiled, “But father, I have done nothing wrong save love a man enough to give myself to him. I am nearly twenty-two seasons, old enough. What can be wrong with love?”  
Eldan took her by the forearms, “You know not what the laws say. Because you were to remain pure, the man who took you against your will must be put to death. You may reveal the man who deflowered you in the High Court.”  
Eidra put her hands to her mouth in horror, “I cannot father. I will not.”  
Eldan shook her hard, “Eidra, you must reveal him. If you do not, your own life is in danger!”  
She broke from her father's grip then, “I am well aware it is either his life or mine but is there no other way? Some form of apology? Some other ritual, a tribute?”  
Eldan's face belied his answer.   
“Father, I cannot, I love him. He is the father of my child. Would you expect Suram to be so disloyal to you were it her in my postion?”  
“The man cannot be above the law.” Eldan threw his hands out to her,  
“And I once said that I would give my life for him.”  
“Madness,” Eldan put his hands to his head, “Do not make me a party to such pain as this. You are still a child and you would protect the man who did this to you?”  
“I am not a child, father. I am a woman.” She seemed to want to say more but faltered.  
“You are the only one who may reveal his name. You must do this at the High Court on the morrow. Think long and hard on this. Would he do as much for you?”  
Eidra fiddled with the hem of her dress, “I believe he would, father, but I shall not ask such a sacrifice.”  
Eldan's shoulders drooped, “Oh Eidra, I pray you search your soul this night for the truth of the matter. I will return on the morrow to sit with the High Court for it is I who also must answer for my actions.”  
“How is it my father must answer at all?”  
Eldan laughed ruefully, “It was I who gave the Uruz to Loki, I who broke the sacred laws in the first place.”  
“Father,” Eidra took his hands, “Beg their indulgence as a parent. Play on their sympathies.”  
“Were it that it was so easy.” Eldan leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. “I will speak with you again when morning comes.”  
Helgi walked back into the room when Eldan left, bowing to her as he passed. “How goes it?”  
Eidra managed a smile, “It goes well. I must appear before the High Court to tell them what happened.”  
“That is all?”  
Eidra nodded, hugged Helgi, “That is all.”


	26. 26

He sat on the edge of the bed twirling the Uruz around on its leather thong, feeling its heft, its power, a soft hum, a vibration which always increased when he would couple with Eidra. He held the disc up to his eye, looking through the center hole as he considered a plan. He would find where Eidra had been taken, go to her room and steal away with her. They would use the gateway and escape...but to where? Vanaheim? Midgard? A grand plan, they would have nothing, would have to start with nothing, but, oh for the chance of a life together.  
Thor's voice outside the bedroom door and his subsequent entry into his room suddenly gave Loki over to a case of giggles.  
“I am bunking here tonight, brother, to keep you company.”  
At this, Loki fairly howled with laughter, lying back on the bed, tears streaming down his face as Thor stared at him.  
“Loki, have you lost your mind?”  
“Not at all,” Loki sat back up, “Tell me, have you ever heard the word, irony?”  
“What is irony?” Thor asked, eliciting another giggle from Loki.  
“I thought not, irony has been demonstrated tonight with your presence here, and tragically so. Thank you for that much needed laugh.”  
Thor took hold of the front of Loki's tunic and pulled him closer, “You mock me.”  
Loki's laughter faded with his smile, “No brother, that is where you are wrong. I despise you.” He pulled his tunic from Thor's fingers.  
“For trying to stop you from making a horrible mistake?”  
. “It was my choice to make. Why did you wish to deny me even the smallest happiness, the love of a woman?!” he shouted, turned away from Thor, unable to look at him.  
“Because you are a prince. You deserve a royal bride, children blessed by Odin. I remain sure that you will one day see the truth of what I say, that you will see your love for a simple servant girl was sadly misguided,” he put a hand on Loki's shoulder but Loki pulled away from him,  
“I will not allow you to keep me from Eidra. Mark my words, we shall be together.”  
Thor took his cloak from his shoulders, “Enough, brother, we must rest. Tomorrow promises to be a long day.”  
Thor pulled off his boots and lay on the bed, on his side, watching his brother as he stood staring into the empty fireplace, barely able to stand still. Thor closed his eyes but dared not sleep. He felt the other side of the bed sink down as Loki lay on his side facing away from him and still Thor listened , waited until Loki's breathing slowed, his body relaxed, succumbing to exhaustion. Thor placed his hand on the hilt of the knife in his thigh holster and let sleep take him as well.

 

Eidra was given a plain tan dress to wear by a servant girl who knocked on the door early that morning. She returned a short time later with the morning meal, a tray filled with smoked fish, a loaf of bread and a jug of buttermilk to share with Helgi though neither of them felt much like eating. All too soon, she was parted from Helgi by two palace guards. Helgi followed Eidra and the guards to the doors of the Throne room. The buzz of the crowd inside, the announcement of the delegates from Asgard nearly stopped Eidra in her tracks but she felt Helgi's hand pat her back. The announcement of the High Court, followed by King Freyr gave rise to a loud shout of “Long live the king!”  
Eidra found she had been holding her breath as the doors swung slowly open and all eyes suddenly fell upon her. Helgi stood off to the right while the guards brought Eidra inside the cavernous room, then she spied Silas standing behind Thor and Loki. She reached Silas's side just as Eidra took the red cushioned seat that stood in the middle of the room facing a podium with long tables on either side where the High Court were taking their seats . Behind the podium, on a dais, was King Freyr's throne upon which he now sat. Eidra turned her head to the right to see another long table along one side of the room where the delegation from Asgard had been seated. Loki was staring at her. She wished to smile at him, give him some measure of reassurance but found the effort too gargantuan to undertake  
. Her father was seated at the end of the table to the right of the podium, the Cup of Volundr placed before him, a servant pouring wine from a large decanter into the gilded wooden cup. Danar stood farther behind him, a grave look on his face.  
She chanced one more glance at Loki who mouthed “I love you,” and she looked away, the pain in her heart too great to bear.  
All too soon, the words rang out through the throne room, “The High Court is now assembled!”   
Eldan stood holding the Cup of Volundr up to the ceiling, down to the ground and to the four points, north, south, east and west, then he took a sip of the wine and handed it to the elder sitting to his right who took a sip as well, passing it to his right and so on until it reached the far end of the assembly. Eidra looked up at Freyr, his countenance unreadable.  
A tall blond-haired older man dressed in a long gray robe stood then and started to speak, “Good King Freyr has called for this assembly today to hear the charges brought against a member of the House Denari, Speaker Toldun?”   
Another man stood. He was bald, rounder, shorter, dressed in an identical gray robe save for the blue strip of silk running around the collar.   
“Eldan Denari, of the House Denari, holder of the Sacred cup of Volundr, gave his daughter Eidra this year hence as a tribute in thanks to the Crown Prince of Asgard, Thor of the House of Odin. The ownership of the young woman was passed, unbeknownst to the High Court, to the Prince Regent, Loki. While employed in his household, Eidra was taken against her will in violation of the sacred laws of Alfheim which thus states that the deflowering of an Alfari female requires ritual purification and family negotiation. Such an act by a man or woman is punishable by death.”   
Eidra clasped her hands together, her knuckles white.   
“The High Court can only assume then, that the prince regent, aware of the violation, then approached Eldan Denari to negotiate terms in form of payment or other such tribute to assuage the damage caused by the act and Eldan, for reasons also unknown, did then give him the Uruz to present to his daughter, thus violating the sacred laws of succession stating that a female of mixed blood must remain pure in order to preserve the bloodline and therefore cannot possess her family birthright save under the most extenuating circumstances. In giving the Uruz to her, Eldan did give her the ability to choose a mate with which she produced a child, stillborn,”   
Helgi put her hand on Loki's chair.  
“In violation of sacred law stating no woman of mixed blood may reproduce. This is also punishable by death.”  
Helgi moaned, steadied herself, the hall was silent for a moment until Eldan stood, “I ask to be recognized.”  
The speaker nodded, “The High Court recognizes Eldan Denari of the House Denari.”  
Eldan turned to King Freyr, “Are the laws irrefutable?”  
Freyr looked at him curiously, “The laws are sacred, thus your answer.”  
“Were the man guilty of these crimes to reveal himself, would the court take his life in exchange for hers?”   
The speaker looked up to Freyr who gave a slight nod.  
“Yes it would. It is the law that the perpetrator of such an act be put to death.”  
Freyr gazed at Eidra who was silent, her eyes downcast, “The woman would have to acknowledge the accusation, lest innocent blood be spilled in error from a chivalrous act.”  
Eldan stared at Loki who was sitting, his hands on the table, his eyes trained upon them. As Eldan had begun to ask his question, Loki felt a strong hand on his thigh. He glanced at Thor's face then, his gaze slipping to Eidra then back to Eldan.   
“Eidra, tell the High Court who took you against your will, who fathered your child.”  
Eidra kept her eyes fixed on Freyr, silent and Eldan slammed his fist on the table, “If you cannot, I can. Lord Loki is the guilty party!”  
There was a collective gasp among the spectators and the High Court. Murmurs started to rise in volume as Toldun raised his hands for silence.  
Thor stood then, his hand on Loki's shoulder, “How dare you accuse a Prince of Asgard of such base, vile acts!”  
Loki made to stand but Thor squeezed his shoulder hard.  
“Loki came to me, to ask forgiveness for his deeds!” Eldan waved his hand at the delegation.  
Freyr had been observing the proceedings and now turned his attention to Eidra,   
“Eidra,” Freyr asked, “Is what your father says true? Is Lord Loki guilty of violating our sacred laws?” She could see Loki nod out of the corner of her eye. Her voice was at first small in the vast room.  
“No,” then louder, steadier, “No!”  
Loki slammed his fists on the table, “EIDRA!”  
Thor shoved him back into the chair hard as the Speaker clapped his hands loud in the din of the room then turned to the delegation, “The High Court will retreat to discuss the matter, we will reconvene shortly to pass sentence.”  
“This is it? Is there nothing more to be said?” Helgi cried asThe High Court members stood and filed out of the room, the crowd starting to move, people to stand and stretch. Before Thor could catch hold of Loki, he was around the table, before Eidra. The guards blocked his way at first but Eidra's cry of “Please!” led them to back away.  
“Eidra, what in the name of Odin are you doing? How can you ask me to let this happen?” He knelt before her, “Tell them the truth, Eidra.”  
She stared at him, tears rolling down her face.   
“Eidra! Tell them. Please.” He took her hands in his, laying his forehead upon them and was suddenly lifted from the floor by Thor.   
“Let me go!” Loki growled, “Eidra please.”  
Thor released his grip, allowing Loki to drop back to his knees, “You disgrace the house of Odin!” He snarled but stood aside, staring down anybody who chanced to be looking at the scene.  
Eidra, you must reveal me to the court!”   
She stroked his hand, feeling the tremors, the distress within, “I cannot forfeit your life for mine. I cannot betray my love for you.”  
“I shall do so for you. I will present myself to Freyr, admit my guilt.”   
“Then I shall deny you,” Eidra swallowed hard, “One of us must live...”  
Loki knelt, his head to hers for some time, talking, begging her to listen to him until  
he felt Thor's hand on his shoulder again. Before he could shrug it off, Thor spoke in his ear,  
“The High Court is returning, brother, come and sit back down before you violate another sacred law.”  
Thor managed to draw him to his feet, steer him around the table just as the High Court began to file in and sit down with King Freyr at the rear, taking his throne again. The speaker stood to the podium and held up his hands for silence.   
“The High Court has reached its decision. However, in light of the circumstances, King Freyr has requested the question be asked again of the woman. Eidra Denari, will you reveal the name of the man responsible for the acts upon your person?”  
She hung her head. “I shall not condemn the man I love for loving me back. I shall not reveal his name.”  
Freyr nodded then, “So be it.”   
Helgi heard Loki gasp, start to rise but Thor put his arm across his chest, holding him to the chair  
The speaker turned to Eidra. “Eidra Denari of the House Denari, you did willfully couple with a man, producing a child though you be of mixed blood and therefore forbidden to do so. In accordance with the sacred laws of the Alfari people, you will be brought to the high ground where you will be put to death .”  
Helgi wailed then, as Loki leapt from his chair, grief plain on his face, chest heaving, panicked.  
The guards gestured for her to rise from the seat and she did so, following them from the room as if in a trance. Helgi pulled Loki away through the crowd as Thor rose from his chair.  
“Come, Milord.” She kept her arm around Silas's shoulders while they pushed through the throng trying to follow the guards as they escorted Eidra from the room. Helgi kept an eye out for Thor, swearing to the gods that if he approached Loki and tried to steer him away from Eidra that she would violate yet another law and stab him with his own dagger.

Clouds had gathered overhead, ominous, threatening rain as the contingent stepped out into the main courtyard, followed by the members of the High Court. Eldan looked barely able to stand. King Freyr approached Eidra and put a hand on her head as he bent low to speak to her.   
“I hope this bring you peace little sister, for your road has not been an easy one to travel.”   
She managed to nod. She desperately needed Loki to hold her, wanted Helgi to comfort her. She was terrified.  
As the party started from the gate, Helgi pushed forward through the crowd until she reached Eidra and grabbed her hand.  
“Helgi,” Eidra cried, hugging her as the guards tried to move them along, “Where is Loki?”  
In the ensuing rush, she had been parted from him, she scanned the crowd to see him stopped at the castle gate.   
Loki!” Helgi cried, “Hurry”

Loki heard his name, willed his feet to move but they seemed destined to disobey him. He felt a hand take his and give it a sharp tug. He looked down to see Silas,   
“Come, Milord, you must see her!” Silas shouted, angry tears in his eyes and Loki started forward through the crowd. Eidra stopped once, was pushed forward by the guards, stopped again determined to wait for Loki who was nearly to her. She felt her arm yanked by one of the guards,   
“We must continue.” He grumbled.  
Eidra wrenched from his grasp, ducking through the crowd, the shouts of the guards following her as she fell into Loki's arms.   
“Tell them,” he roared, “TELL THEM!”  
“I cannot,” she leaned to his ear, “I love you.” All at once she was being torn from his arms,   
“Wait! Eidra NO!”  
Loki took the Uruz in his hand and held it up only to feel rough hands on his shoulders pulling him backwards. “Brother, you must let her go.”  
Loki wrenched himself free of Thor, “Do not tell me what I must do! I love her, have you even heard me before now? I LOVE HER!” He could feel his control slipping away, his mind spiraling ever downward as they reached the high ground where stood two short stone pillars with iron rings attached to the top. The guards walked Eidra between them and locked her wrists into black iron shackles linked with chains, threading the chains through the rings at the top of the pillars, pulling them outward so that she stood, hands atop the stones, her body trembling hard enough to rattle the metal, her eyes fixed on Loki's.  
The guard drew his sword from his scabbard and bowed to her, finally eliciting a response as she began to sob, struggling against the chains in a primal effort to stay alive for as long as she could. The guard walked up to her, put his hand on her shoulder and lifted the sword.   
Loki could hear her voice in his head, I would give my life for you, do you fear death, see her smile, her hands upon his shoulders, smell her hair, feel the warmth of her skin against his and it broke him.  
“ME!” Loki cried, “My life for her, let me take her place!” He surged forward through the crowd, as the guard hesitated, looking back at Loki.   
“Let me stand for her..!” He had reached the edge of the crowd, about to break free when a large hand closed around his mouth and his arms were pinned against him.  
“Loki, stop this madness!” Thor growled in his ear. It was then he began to scream against his brother's palm, thrashing with as much strength as he had left in him, putting them both to their knees. He watched the guard turn away from them as Freyr gestured for him to continue.   
His eyes grew wide, panicked as the seconds ticked away. The guard placed the sword against her stomach as Loki bucked hard against Thor's grip, finally freeing an arm which he used to tear at Thor's hand across his mouth. Eidra turned her eyes away from the guard determined to keep her gaze locked with Loki's when suddenly the guard shoved the sword forward.  
The threads of sanity snapped when her cry reached his ears. He tore himself from Thor's grip with a howl as her knees began to buckle beneath her. He stumbled up the hillside, reaching her as she slid to the ground, panting hard. He dropped to his knees, gathering her to him, feeling the blood soaking the front of his tunic and he began to wail, to rock her back and forth as she struggled to speak. “Loki, Cait...” her mouth twisted in frustration.  
He could not bear the agony upon her face, the shock as her body began to succumb to the mortal wound. She opened her mouth, endeavoring to speak again, failing as her breath caught in her throat. He brushed her hair from her forehead.“Peace, my love. Soon there shall be no more pain.”  
She tried to raise her hand to touch his face but her strength was gone.   
“...will wait....for...”   
He closed his eyes, touched his lips to hers one more time, then whispered, “Ditt hjerte slutter å slå, din smerte retrett.” He felt her body relax in his arms then, and he roared to the sky.

 

The rain had begun in earnest but no one at first dared approach the dark prince as he rocked Eidra's body, sobbing, holding her, stroking her wet hair, his cheek pressed to her forehead. Finally Thor put his hand on Loki's shoulder, “Let them take her and prepare her for her journey.”  
Helgi knelt beside him, stroking Eidra's face as she was lifted from his arms. He felt strange, as though he were dreaming, when Helgi helped him to his feet. He stepped back from them then, drawing his sword from his scabbard, eyes raised skyward as Thor rushed forward, “Brother no!”   
“DO NOT TOUCH ME!” He bellowed, then softer, “Do not touch me.”   
He reached behind his head and lifted his hair from his back, shearing the long ponytail off just at the nape of his neck, gathering it into a sodden coil around his hand, following the guards as they carried Eidra's body back to the castle.

When they prepared her body, he watched them, marking everything in his memory. The way they brushed her hair; he recalled doing the same for her on many nights. She seemed so peaceful, the light green silk gown they adorned her in fitting her perfectly, making him wish he had brought the sash she had woven to put around her waist, then glad he had not, he would wear it against his skin from this day onward.   
He insisted on helping them to erect the scaffold she would lie on, though he worked in silence beside the Alfari. After they placed her on the platform, he climbed up, placing his ponytail beneath her folded hands.   
He stayed there at the base of the scaffolding that day and through the night, kneeling, his head down, his lips moving in silent prayer until Thor began to fear that his brother's mind had come undone. When he finally rose, mounted his horse and followed Thor out of the glen where she lay high above the forest floor, he was silent.  
Upon their return to Asgard, Loki locked himself within his chambers, stripped down, dropping the blood stiffened clothes to the floor, retreating to the bathing room where he drew water into the basin. There he remained a long time, watching the blood wash away, letting the rage, the grief, madness sink deeper into his skin until it touched his very soul.   
After he'd dried off, he opened the wardrobe, taking the sash Eidra had woven, tying it about his naked waist. He drew on a robe then lay down upon the bed where he stayed until finally his mother's pleading at the door moved him and he let her inside. He lay there in Frigga's arms as she cradled him while he screamed his agony to the heavens. The man he had become with Eidra's love had died with her sacrifice, reborn as hatred, rage, spite, his thoughts on one person alone, Thor.


	27. 27

Epilogue

 

 

In the fullness of time, Loki led his brother to believe he had forgiven him, even going so far as to seek out his company when he actually bothered with anyone at all. His mind, however, was only intent on one thing, revenge.  
When Helgi brought her little niece to live with her, a year after Eidra's passing, the child seemed taken with Loki. She would toddle after him whenever she would see him. At first he would not trouble himself with her but Helgi would bring the child when she would clean his chambers and eventually Helgi would find him sitting on the floor playing with the child, letting her climb on him, tug on his hair, his grief momentarily assuaged. On one such visit, Loki handed the child a stuffed leather ball that he had made for her.  
However, one day as she sat on his lap, her chubby hand found the Uruz hanging about his neck. She stared at it intently as if she could see something he could not. He had gently put her down from his lap and walked away. Thereafter, he would be absent whenever Helgi came to clean his chambers.  
He became brooding, sullen, his heart darker than it had been before. He preferred the solitude of his chambers, he would no longer ride. He ceased answering correspondence as he would often do on the nights he would sit by the fire with Eidra. He had his own chair removed from his chambers, he would sit only in Eidra's chair. He stopped attending the festivals, rarely was he seen at the feasts. He became thinner than before, pacing the corridors late at night. Soon he would only speak with Helgi, and, on occasion, Thor. He had made certain Silas was given a position training in the Royal Guards but rarely saw him.  
When Odin began to fail, Loki sensed change was coming. Odin would fall asleep during High Council meetings, forget where he was going or what he was doing as he roamed the palace halls. He would stumble over speeches he'd made countless times before. There were rumors that he was ready to step down, that he was ready to proclaim a new king.

Summer had returned, the sweet wind ruffling Loki's hair like an indulgent father as he held the Uruz in his fingers while he lay on his bed one evening, twirling the stone around, looking through the portal,  
“Vanaheim,” The image shimmered again, “Alfheim” his voice hoarse as the most difficult scene to bear shimmered to life before him. He lay there, looking at Freyr's castle, the road to the glen beyond it, his grief rising anew as it so often did, then his mind turned again. He twirled the Uruz in his fingers and said, “Jotunheim.”


End file.
